Police officer, suspect shot in Griffin

A Griffin police officer is recovering at Grady Hospital after being hurt during a shootout with a suspect. It happened on Circus Street in Griffin around 10 p.m. on Wednesday.

Neighbors say it all started when a man known as Dread began acting strange, stripping out of his clothes and bringing his furniture to the curb. They say he was upset because of a custody dispute he was having with the mother of his daughter.

Someone called police. When the officer arrived, they say the man bolted. The officer chased after him, and that's when things got violent.

"The person was behind a tree and started shooting at the officer. So the officer was taking cover and returned fire," said Captain DeWayne Jones of the Griffin Police Department.

Investigators say Lt. Curtis Keys, a 15-year veteran, was arriving on the scene to provide backup for another officer when the windshield of his squad car was hit. Keys suffered facial injuries, including glass in his eye.
    
The suspect allegedly continued to fire on police. The other officer ended up shooting the man at least once. The gunman was being treated at Atlanta Medical Center, and his condition is not known.

"The suspect continued walking toward the initial responding officer and as he started walking back toward the officer, he started shooting once again at the officer, and the officer re-engaged and returned fire. The bad guy was struck at least one time," said Jones. Department.

Police say they found on the suspect a semi-automatic weapon, a shoulder harness and 12 rounds of ammunition in his back pocket.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is working the case. The officer who pulled the trigger is on paid administrative leave pending the results of the investigation.