Suspect uninvolved in dispute that led to officer-involved shooting in Columbus

COLUMBUS, Ga. (WTVM) - News Leader 9 is following up on a deadly officer-involved shooting in Columbus, a little more than 24 hours after it happened.

We have new details about what led police to Earline Avenue, where a man was killed. Witnesses also tell us what they saw leading up to the shooting.

Columbus Police Chief Freddie Blackmon said they got a call about a domestic dispute on Earline avenue. But, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation says the man who was shot and killed by an officer was not involved in that domestic dispute.

Wednesday afternoon, over 30 Columbus Police Officers, plus local sheriff’s deputies and GBI agents, came together after a fatal officer-involved shooting. Muscogee County’s Coroner says the person shot and killed near Manchester Expressway was 30-year-old Reginald Grant.

“We didn’t actually hear any gunshots. Our neighbor called us down the street and asked if we heard the shots. He heard ‘em,” said one neighbor Leon McCurley.

Columbus Police say they responded to a domestic dispute on this part of Earline Avenue around 2 p.m. They said when they approached Grant, he took off running, shooting at officers who chased him.

Chief Freddie Blackmon says one officer was shot, and they returned fire, eventually killing Grant. The GBI says Grant was NOT involved in the domestic dispute that led police to the area. The agency says the argument actually involved a couple.

“We didn’t hear any of that until we came outside, and then we heard the sirens coming,” said McCurley.

One man tells News Leader 9 he knew Grant because he hung around the area. That eyewitness says he watched Grant run away from officers, headed toward Young Avenue. That’s where the coroner says Grant was shot and killed.

“You feel kind of unsafe, but like I say -- it could happen anywhere,” said McCurley.

According to the GBI, the latest incident marked the 85th officer-involved shooting in the state of Georgia so far this year. Six of those were in Columbus - two of those ending with someone dead. All but one involved Columbus police officers.

One married couple in the neighborhood where this happened says they don’t plan to move anytime soon.

“...Feel just as safe here as we do anywhere else,” said McCurley.

Officials say the officer injured in that shooting is still recovering but was released from the hospital. However, the department says the officer will remain on administrative leave with pay until the investigation is done.

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