The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has been called in to Douglas, Georgia to investigate the shooting of a 10-year-old child during the apprehension of a suspect.
Dakota Corbitt was shot in the back of the knee while an unnamed deputy was in pursuit of suspect, Christopher Barnett.
The 19-year-old Barnett was wanted for an armed robbery of a gas station the night before. When he was stopped later that night, he shot Officer Larry Carter in the leg and fled the scene.
Officers located Barnett at a trailer park outside of Douglas the next day.
WALB News reported:
?Investigators said Barnett was found outside a home in a trailer park? They said he wandered into the trailer park and had made friendly conversation with some of the residents there.?
The family did not know that Barnett was wanted.
At this point, it is still uncertain as to what led to the shooting of the child.
Sheriff Doyle Wooten was reported as stating that while approaching the property a dog ran up to the officer. One round was shot. The bullet missed the dog but hit the child. According to WALB however, it is still unclear if the gun was intentionally shot or accidentally discharged
The dog was originally identified as a pit bull by the Coffee County Ga. Police Scanner Facebook page; however, this post has since been removed and cannot be verified at this time. The post also mentioned that the officer involved in the shooting of the child was extremely upset by the incident.
The child has since been sent to Savanah Memorial Hospital for surgery according.
The child’s mother, Amy Corbitt, spoke with WALB and made this statement:
?After I went to hollering at them that they had shot my son then that’s when they told me the black gentleman that was up there at my house was involved in the shootout with the cop early this morning. Like I told them, I understood that. However, that was a 10-year-old boy that they shot.?
Barnett was captured and is now in jail. Barnett is charged with aggravated assault of a peace officer and armed robbery.
I want to commend Officer Larry Carter for still trying to pursue the suspect despite his wound. He chased Barnett for about a quarter of a mile after being shot in the thigh. I can’t imagine how painful that was for Officer Carter. He has my utmost respect.
Now, I know accidents happen. I know in some cases it can’t be helped. However, what is with shootings involving dogs? It would be one thing if only the dog was injured, but it wasn’t this time. The bullet missed and hit a child. Granted, this could have been a complete accident, and I hope it was for the sake of the officer. I’m sure he is extremely distraught at this time regardless?though.
There’s many questions still unanswered at this point about what happened and led to a 10-year-old child being shot. I can understand tensions were high as the suspect was most likely considered armed and dangerous. However when children are injured, we must always try to do better to prevent the same thing from happening again. Ultimately though, I don’t know what it is like to be a cop, and again, many questions are still unanswered. Hopefully, the GBI will be able to get to the bottom of it all. In the end, the suspect was caught, and a bad guy has been taken off the street, which is good. Fortunately, no one lost their life, and that is something to be thankful for considering all the headlines we see regularly.
As video becomes available on this shooting, we will update you!
What do you think? Was it a complete accident, or was it an intentional accident? What can this add to the debate on guns? Let us know at the Liberal America Facebook page.
Liz Lee considers herself a modern woman of the South and hails from the swamps of South Georgia. She votes along no party line and prefers to look at issues from all angles before taking a stance. She takes particular interest in healthcare issues, mental health issues, and the battle for equality. She is also an emphatic advocate for the end to dog breed discrimination legislation. She is a wife, mother of one human child, mother to one furry American Bully, a college student, and also your typical everyday Wonder Woman. When she hangs up her cape, you can find her curled up in her office sewing, writing, playing World of Warcraft, or practicing banjo. You can follow her on Facebook to see what issue she is tackling.
