Houston County Man Killed in Police-Involved Shooting
NewsCentral Staff
Story Created:
Mar 11, 2013 at 12:20 AM EDT
Story Updated:
Mar 11, 2013 at 8:00 PM EDT
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is looking into a fatal police-involved shooting that happened Sunday night in Warner Robins. Officers shot and killed Anthony Rawls on the front porch of his home.
"They didn't negotiate with him at all. I mean except for just put your hands up," said Earl Rawls, brother of Anthony Rawls. "Then after that, a couple seconds, then boom boom boom boom!"
According to a press release by the Warner Robins PD, the officers were responding to a domestic dispute between Rawls and his wife.
"His wife was on the phone with 911, that's all I can tell you," said Earl Rawls. "I didn't see any altercations before that."
The release states that while officers were in route, they were advised that Rawls was armed and threatening his wife.
"Four of them showed up besides the house," said Earl Rawls. "They were pointing the gun, I was like you see my hands are empty. Three went over there and hid behind the van and another went behind the mailbox."
Rawls' neighbor, Michael Stuckey, was inside his home when he heard what he thought were fireworks.
"I came running out the front door thinking I'm going to catch some kids with fireworks," said Stuckey. "What I saw was almost every car in the police department in my front yard."
It was then when he realized it wasn't fireworks at all. Noticing police escorting Rawls' wife away from the scene. He says she was very emotional.
"She was screaming they shot my baby, they shot my baby."
Initially Stuckey thought she was talking about one of the couple's kids, who frequently plays with his daughter, but what really happened was just as surprising.
"He always had family cookouts and if he was cooking out he would yell over for you to come and grab a plate, he was a nice gentleman," said Stuckey.
Anthony Rawls worked for the Georgia Department of Corrections at Macon State Prison. Despite Earl Rawls' claim that he never saw a gun in his brother's possession, police say shots were exchanged, ending with Rawls dead and one officer receiving minor injuries.
"They (officers) were joking that the weapon had shot the button off his (an officer's) pants and the other one said he tried to push him through the window," said Earl Rawls. "So that's the one I think had his arm hurt."
Earl Rawls says he doesn't think his brother's shooting was racial and he still has faith in the police department. He says his brother was a good guy, who may have had bad moment.
The Warner Robins Police Department has handed the investigation over to the GBI, no further details have been released.
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