Officer Shoots, Kills Stabbing Suspect

Update: 7/23 7:58 p.m.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting that Douglas County Coroner Randy Daniels has identified one of the men. Leon Alfred, 23, of the Atlanta area stabbed the other man. The coroner said the victim was a homeless person identified as "John Doe." Read the complete story here.

A Douglas County sheriff’s officer fatally shot a 24-year-old man wielding a knife at approximately 6:45 p.m. at the QuikTrip gas station on Thornton Road, according to Douglas County Sheriff Phil Miller.

The man with the knife is suspected of stabbing another man moments before during a fight.

The stabbing victim was taken to Grady Hospital, where he died, Miller said. His name has not been released because the family has not been notified.

The slain stabbing suspect's name also has not been released.

The officer is uninjured.

“A call was placed at 6:34 p.m. that there was a fight at the QuikTrip, and the officer arrived at 6:36 p.m.,” Miller said.

The officer “saw a bleeding body on the ground,” he continued. “The man had apparently been cut with a knife. When the officer went around the building, he found a man wielding a knife. He talked to the man for several minutes, in hopes he would put the knife down.

“Witnesses said they heard the officer say, ‘Drop the knife, drop the knife,’ but the guy didn’t do it and kept walking toward the officer. The officer had no choice but to fire on him, which resulted in a man being dead.”

Miller said the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has been notified because it handles all officer shooting incidents.

He said seven or eight witnesses were on the scene.

“Witnesses and a family member said the guy was schizophrenic or delusional,” Miller said. “It’s a terrible thing. I wish there was a better system to handle people like that so they’re not out on the street."

Miller said the officer involved in the incident has been put on administrative leave and will undergo counseling.