Authorities were using high-tech video billboards Thursday to spread the word about a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the man suspected of killing an Athens police officer and wounding a second officer.
Included in the rotation of advertisements on the billboards, including some alongside metro Atlanta interstates, was an ad featuring the mugshot of suspect Jamie Hood, along with information on the reward.
At a news conference on Wednesday, GBI Director Vernon Keenan said more than 150 officers from 20 law enforcement agencies were involved in the manhunt for Hood.
Hood, 33, is charged with murder in the shooting death of Athens Senior Police Officer Elmer "Buddy" Christian.
Christian, 34, a father of two young children, was fatally shot Tuesday afternoon while trying to stop Hood, a suspect in an earlier carjacking, Athens-Clarke County Police Chief Joseph H. Lumpkin Sr. said.
Hood also is accused of shooting another officer, Senior Police Officer Tony H. Howard.
Howard, 43, was taken to a hospital and is expected to recover from his gunshot wounds, Lumpkin said.
Lumpkin said Wednesday that Howard, a married father of four boys and young men, came out of surgery late Tuesday night. Wednesday morning, Howard, an eight-year veteran on the Athens force, "woke up policing," telling fellow officers what they needed to be doing to catch Hood, Lumpkin said, calling the shooting of Christian "an ambush and an assassination."
Lumpkin said Wednesday morning that while a nationwide lookout had been posted for Hood, he believes the suspect is still in the Athens area.
The shooting happened around 12:50 p.m. near Sycamore Drive and Atlanta Highway. The area is about three miles west of the University of Georgia campus. It's also where police believe Hood resides.
Authorities were looking for Hood because they believed he was involved in an earlier kidnapping and carjacking, Lumpkin said. Police encountered Hood after Howard spotted and stopped a red Chevrolet Suburban driven by Hood's brother Matthew.
Matthew Hood, 27, appeared to comply with authorities, Lumpkin said. Jamie Hood stepped out of the car and shot at Howard and then ran, Lumpkin said.
After hearing the shots, another police officer, Jerry Johnson, arrested SUV driver Matthew Hood. He was taken to the Clarke County Jail, where he was being held Wednesday on a probation violation charge.
Jamie Hood saw Christian while running from the traffic stop, and he fired into Christian's police cruiser, killing the officer, Lumpkin said.
Authorities say Hood carjacked and escaped in a silver Chevrolet Prizm. They found the car several hours later on Airport Road, according to Oconee County Sheriff's Capt. Jimmy Williams, whose agency was participating in the manhunt.
Hood is described as a 5-foot-8, 175-pound black man in blue shorts and a white T-shirt.
Authorities continue to release photos of Hood, who is known to shave his head every two or three days. The GBI Wednesday released a sketch of what Hood would look like if he had been unable to shave.
Anyone with information is asked to call 706-613-3345.
Investigators think he’s trying to contact friends or family, hoping to find support as he's on the run.
Family members, including his father, Robert Hood Sr., and his sister-in-law are urging Hood to turn himself in to authorities.
"Please turn yourself in for your nieces and nephews," Hood's sister-in-law Brandy Johnson said.
Wayne Barrett, owner of Barrett's Towing and a friend of Christian's, said he's gone out looking for Hood on his own. He's told the drivers of his tow trucks to keep their eyes open as well.
"When a cop car rides by, when he sees it, he's going to run; I figure if he sees the rollback, he ain't going to think nothing about it," Barrett said.
Hood is a convicted felon. He was released from prison in 2009 after serving more than 11 years for an armed robbery conviction in Clarke County, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections. The agency said he had several distinguishing tattoos, including the word "job" with a female on his chest, the words "Robert/dad" on his right arm and the words "mom Azale" with a heart on his left arm. He also had scars on the back of his head and chest.
Hood's family, including his six brothers and their father, are no strangers to violence, according to a September 2004 article from the Athens Banner-Herald.
Timothy Hood, 22, was shot and killed by an Athens-Clarke police officer on Nov. 6, 2001, after he allegedly held a gun to the officer's head, the Banner-Herald said.
Another brother, Robert Hood, was arrested in September 2004 in connection with a retaliatory shooting two hours after his father was badly beaten the day before, the Banner-Herald said. The elder Hood was beaten during an altercation, which started after he confronted a group of men. Hood was armed with a screwdriver, the Banner-Herald said.
Though Tuesday's shooting was three miles from UGA, the university was unaffected, according to campus Police Chief Jimmy Williamson.
"We sent out an e-mail to our students to stay out of the area" where the shooting occurred, Williamson said, adding that the shooter was moving fast and was no longer in that area. "Right now, there's no reason for us to believe the campus is in danger in any way."
He said campus officers were assisting with the manhunt.
Several elementary schools locked staff and students inside their schools, according to the website of the Athens Banner-Herald.
Christian had been with the Athens police force since December 2002. He was married, with a 2-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter. A memorial fund has been set up for his family at the Athens First Bank. Contributions can be sent to the bank at 150 West Hancock Ave., Athens, Ga., 30601.
-- AJC staff writers Kristi E. Swartz and Larry Hartstein, and Pete Combs with AM750 and now 95.5FM News/Talk WSB contributed to this report.
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