GBI: Man fatally shot after firing gun at south Georgia officer

A Georgia police officer fatally shot a man who opened fire with a gun during a foot chase in the port city of Brunswick, state authorities said Sunday.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said it’s conducting an independent investigation, which is common practice for shootings by police officers in the state.

Brunswick police patrol officer was looking for a speeding car early Saturday evening when he saw a man who started running, the GBI said in a news release. The officer began chasing the man on foot.

During that chase, the GBI said, the man being pursued drew a gun and fired several shots at a different officer. That officer, Lt. Donald Babbin, returned fire and fatally shot the man.

The GBI identified the man killed as Charles Eric Moses Jr., 33, of Brunswick. It said Moses was taken to an area hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A GBI medical examiner planned an autopsy

The agency did not give the races of Moses or of the officer who shot him. No officers were injured.

Moses’ death marks the 71st shooting involving a Georgia police officer that the GBI has been asked to investigate in 2020, the agency said.