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Authorities say a man took his own life Thursday afternoon after leading Georgia State Patrol troopers on a chase that ended at the busy intersection of Cobb Parkway and Circle 75 Parkway, across from The Battery.
The incident began just before noon when a trooper stopped a black Honda Civic for a window tint violation.
Officials said the driver initially pulled over but sped off as the trooper approached the vehicle.
Troopers pursued the car south on Cobb Parkway and forced it to slow at the intersection.
A trooper maneuvered in front of the Civic, blocking it in.
When troopers approached, they found the driver dead from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
A passenger in the vehicle was escorted from the scene by officers and appeared distraught.
A portion of Cobb Parkway remained closed for hours as investigators worked the scene.
Motorists described a frightening scene as the chase came to a halt. “Whoever was in the car they were chasing started firing. I’m trying to duck and get out the way,” Clarence Hester said.
Kristian Jones, another driver nearby, said, “I felt something strike my car. And so I looked over to see what happened and I see a car trying to squeeze in between me and this truck. Before he could make it out, an officer came around and he had stopped the vehicle from going.”
Hester added, “Georgia State Patrol blocked the vehicle in so they couldn’t get away then all the gunfire started happening.”
Chris, a bystander, described the aftermath as chaotic: “There was about 15 different cop cars everywhere, ambulance came down, there was a bunch of chaos it was chaotic.”
The name of the deceased was not released.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Georgia Department of Public Safety’s Office of Professional Standards are handling the investigation.
