12-28-2010, 10:43 AM
A state trooper was shot and killed late Monday following a chase in northwest Atlanta, the Georgia State Patrol said.
Trooper First Class Chadwick LeCroy, 38, of Marietta was shot twice in the face by a suspect he had tried to pull over, the GSP said. Atlanta and Cobb County police arrested the suspect shortly after the shooting.
The incident began shortly after 11 p.m. when LeCroy tried to pull over a 2007 Mazda, on Bolton Road near James Jackson Parkway, for having a broken headlight, the GSP said. After a brief pursuit, the Mazda crashed at St. Paul Avenue and Hightower Road.
LeCroy approached the Mazda, and at some point the driver opened fire, GSP spokesman Gordy Wright told WSB Radio, adding it is unclear whether any struggle preceded the shooting.
"That's part of the investigation, to determine if there was a struggle or he was just approaching the vehicle and the violator opened fire," Wright said. "We're just not sure."
LeCroy died while being rushed to Grady Memorial Hospital.
Following the shooting, the suspect drove off in LeCroy's patrol car, the GSP said. The patrol car was ditched a few blocks away on Gun Club Drive. Atlanta and Cobb police arrested the suspect nearby, and authorities also found the gun believed to have been used in the killing.
Police have not released the suspect's name or identified a motive. Wright said the GBI and Atlanta police are leading the investigation.
LeCroy is survived by his wife and two sons, ages 8 and 21. He had been assigned to the Atlanta area since graduating from GSP's Trooper School in August 2008.
He was the first trooper to be killed by gunfire since 1975, and the 27th trooper killed in the line of duty since the GSP was organized in 1937.
Trooper First Class Chadwick LeCroy, 38, of Marietta was shot twice in the face by a suspect he had tried to pull over, the GSP said. Atlanta and Cobb County police arrested the suspect shortly after the shooting.
The incident began shortly after 11 p.m. when LeCroy tried to pull over a 2007 Mazda, on Bolton Road near James Jackson Parkway, for having a broken headlight, the GSP said. After a brief pursuit, the Mazda crashed at St. Paul Avenue and Hightower Road.
LeCroy approached the Mazda, and at some point the driver opened fire, GSP spokesman Gordy Wright told WSB Radio, adding it is unclear whether any struggle preceded the shooting.
"That's part of the investigation, to determine if there was a struggle or he was just approaching the vehicle and the violator opened fire," Wright said. "We're just not sure."
LeCroy died while being rushed to Grady Memorial Hospital.
Following the shooting, the suspect drove off in LeCroy's patrol car, the GSP said. The patrol car was ditched a few blocks away on Gun Club Drive. Atlanta and Cobb police arrested the suspect nearby, and authorities also found the gun believed to have been used in the killing.
Police have not released the suspect's name or identified a motive. Wright said the GBI and Atlanta police are leading the investigation.
LeCroy is survived by his wife and two sons, ages 8 and 21. He had been assigned to the Atlanta area since graduating from GSP's Trooper School in August 2008.
He was the first trooper to be killed by gunfire since 1975, and the 27th trooper killed in the line of duty since the GSP was organized in 1937.