A Georgia sheriff’s deputy was shot and killed while responding to a reported domestic dispute in what police said was an ambush of officers by a suspect who killed himself.
Deputy Brandon Cunningham, 30, and another deputy responded to a call shortly after 6 a.m. ET Saturday at a home in a subdivision in Hiram, Georgia. When they arrived, a suspect fired a “hail of bullets” at the deputies and other officers, striking Cunningham, Maj. Ashley Henson of the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office said at a news briefing.
“Unfortunately, it appears our deputies were ambushed,” Henson said.
He called the shooting “an extremely tragic situation.”
Paulding County Sheriff’s Office via AP
“This is something that has never happened in the history of the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office,” Henson said, according to CBS affiliate WNAF. “We have never lost a deputy in the line of duty.”
Cunningham died at the hospital from a gunshot wound, Paulding County Sheriff Gary Gulledge said.
“Tonight we lost a hero,” Gulledge said, adding that “it’s going to be a tough time for all of us and all of our guys.”
The suspect, who was not immediately identified, died of what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Henson said.
A woman involved in the domestic dispute had left but returned while police were on the scene. She was also shot and taken to an Atlanta-area hospital where she was in stable condition, Henson said.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation will oversee the investigation, Henson said, adding that it was not immediately clear whether any of the officers returned fire in the community about 27 miles northwest of Atlanta.
Cunningham started working for the sheriff’s department in 2020 and had been part of the uniformed patrol division for about two years, WNAF reported. He leaves behind two children.
“Our hearts are broken,” Henson said. “You see we’re holding on, but there’s already going to be heartbreak, there’s already tears.”
