Rookie Georgia police officer shot to death; gunman killed

A rookie suburban Atlanta police officer was shot and killed Thursday by a man who was also killed in a shoot-out with other officers, officials said.

The names of the DeKalb County police officer and the suspected gunman were not immediately available and few other details were released.

Police said that the officer, who had been with the force for a little more than a year, made a traffic stop in suburban Atlanta about 5 p.m. Thursday.

“Tonight, a DeKalb County police officer died in the line of duty serving the citizens of DeKalb County,” James Conroy, the DeKalb County chief of police, said in a statement on the Internet.

The suspect ran from the traffic stop and shot at the officer, Conroy told local media. Other police officers arrived at the scene with police dogs and tracked the suspect, who was hiding behind a nearby business, police said.

One dog who helped track the suspect was also shot and was in critical condition early Friday, officials said.

Officers returned fire and seriously wounded the suspect, officials said. The wounded suspect and the police officer were taken to an Atlanta hospital, where they both died, Conroy said.

Incoming Georgia Governor Brian Kemp expressed his sympathies to the officer’s family and fellow police.

“We are forever grateful for his service and sacrifice,” Kemp wrote on his twitter page. “Our prayers are with those who mourn.”

Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta, editing by Larry King