Second Georgia deputy dies after shooting sparked by fight between neighbors
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Deputies praying after the shooting. (Crisp County Sheriff's Office)
The second deputy shot in Peach County, Georgia, while responding to a report of a dispute among neighbors Sunday evening has died.
Agents with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation returned to Ralph Stanley Elrod’s home for a second day trying to get answers. Their focus Tuesday, according to one special agent: the trajectory of rounds Elrod allegedly fired at the deputies who responded to his home on November 6.
Sgt. Patrick Sondron, 41, was killed and Deputy Daryl Smallwood was rushed to a Macon hospital where he spent the past two days in the ICU before passing away Tuesday.
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Late Monday night, GBI agents charged 57-year-old Elrod with murder and four counts of aggravated assault on law enforcement officers. They confirm he is the father of a Jones County deputy, which is one of the many agencies that responded to Elrod's home the night he allegedly opened fire.
According to the GBI, Elrod was shot once in the stomach by a Byron police officer who hid behind his protective shield while firing engaging in a gun battle with Elrod. More charges are expected to be filed Wednesday.
The shooting of two deputies has everyone is the small town of Byron, Georgia posing the same question: “Why?”
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