A man was injured in a shootout with deputies Saturday on I-20 near the Alabama border, officials said, one of three officer-involved shootings across Georgia over a four-hour span that morning.
The shootings, which left a man dead and two others in critical condition, occurred between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. at three locations — the interstate in Haralson County; a Roswell sports bar; and a traffic stop in Snellville. All three remain under investigation by the GBI.
The first incident happened around 1 a.m. at Mazzy’s Sports Bar and Grill along Alpharetta Highway. According to the GBI, Martin Candelas Ponce, 34, was shot by police after staff and customers called authorities to report an “unruly patron” who was pointing a firearm at people.
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
When officers responded to the establishment in the Brannon Square shopping complex, they found Ponce sitting at the bar with a handgun, officials said.
Officers ordered him to drop his weapon, but Ponce allegedly didn’t comply and instead raised it, the agency added. He was shot by a Roswell police officer and taken to a hospital in critical condition.
Marcus Andrew Eaddy, 29, of Lithonia, also remains in critical condition after he opened fire and was shot by Haralson County and St. Clair County (Ala.) sheriff’s deputies in the eastbound lanes of I-20 in Tallapoosa, according to the GBI.
No law enforcement members were injured during the incident, which began around 3 a.m. Saturday when Hoover police (Ala.) and Vestavia (Ala.) police responded to calls about Eaddy, who was outside shooting an “AR-style gun,” the state agency said.
When officers arrived, the suspect drove away in a dark-colored Chrysler with Georgia tags, according to the GBI. Several Alabama law enforcement agencies joined the pursuit, which continued through Alabama and onto I-20 toward Georgia.
Officials said Alabama law enforcement deployed spike strips to stop the car, and the vehicle came to a rest between Exit 3 and Exit 5. A shootout then ensued between Eaddy and deputies from Haralson and St. Clair counties, the state agency said. Eaddy was taken to the hospital.
The GBI said investigators found a handgun near Eaddy and an assault rifle inside his vehicle.
At about 4 a.m., officials said 36-year-old Rashawn Johnson was fatally shot by police in Snellville after he was pulled over for not having his headlights on.
During the traffic stop along West Main Street near Fountain Drive, the man rolled down his window “slightly” and repeated to the officer that he wanted to call his mother, according to the agency.
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
The GBI said Johnson later refused to roll down the window and comply with the officer’s commands to get out of the vehicle. After telling Johnson he was under arrest for obstruction, the officer opened the door and spotted a gun, the state agency said. Johnson then opened fire and was struck, according to the GBI.
Officials did not say if Johnson fired the weapon at officers. Snellville police previously said Johnson pointed the firearm at his head.
The incidents were the 14th, 15th and 16th officer-involved shootings the state agency was asked to investigate this year. The last time there were three such shootings on the same day was 10 months ago, on May 24.
“In recent years, the GBI has responded to three officer involved shootings in less than 24 hours,” GBI spokeswoman Nelly Miles told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It doesn’t happen frequently, but it has happened. In general, our agency has had an uptick in requests to investigate OIS cases.”
First, a Polk County officer critically injured a 63-year-old man who allegedly reached for a gun. A few hours later, a man was injured in a shootout after leading troopers on a chase on I-20. Then, a Bibb County deputy shot a man who officials say grabbed a gun during a traffic stop.
It was a chaotic 24 hours that also saw a Covington officer shot in the head while responding to a domestic fight at a hotel the previous day.
The three shootings Saturday remain under investigation.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
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