Armed man injured in confrontation with Atlanta police

ATLANTA - A man was injured in a shooting involving Atlanta police in southwest Atlanta on Wednesday. 

It happened along Lakewood Avenue near Perkerson Road on Wednesday evening. 

What we know:

Officers were called to the scene at around 7:15 p.m. after a report of an armed man. 

According to the Atlanta Police Department, officers encountered a 42-year-old man who refused to drop a gun during the confrontation.

At some point during the encounter, at least one officer opened fire. The suspect was struck, disarmed, and injured.

Police said the man suffered a gunshot wound and was transported to a hospital. He was described as alert, conscious, and in stable condition

No officers were injured. 

Crime scene tape surrounded the Nationwide Discount Tires well into the evening as investigators combed the scene for evidence, spoke to witnesses, and reviewed surviellence video.

What we don't know:

Few details about the shooting or the circumstances leading to it have been released. 

The name of the man and details about his condition were not immediately known.

What they're saying:

Timothy Weachock, who had just arrived from Indiana, described hearing gunfire. Weachock said he had just parked his vehicle after a long overnight drive when he heard several gunshots and saw officers rush in with weapons drawn. "Three, about three to five, and it was over," Weachock said at the scene. "They had about three guys with guns drawn in the parking lot... unmarked cars... and they all swarmed."

Weachock said he couldn’t tell exactly what led to the confrontation. "Whatever the troops were after this individual for, so I really don't know," he said. "It seems like they were after this individual for some reason because they had all kinds of personnel here."

The situation unfolded quickly, he said, with police yelling commands before shots were fired. "I hear the cops over there yelling, ‘Get down’ or ‘Drop the weapon’ or do something. And then I hear shots ringing out—three to five shots—with two or three cops with guns pointed at somebody on the other side of the vehicle," Weachock recalled. "It happened very fast. It didn’t take that many shots, I think, to end the situation."

The incident occurred just 50 to 100 yards from where Weachock stood. "There’s no mistake in it when you hear... it was gunfire," he said. "It doesn't sound like a firecracker. It's a very definitive gunfire sound."

Weachock, who had driven more than 600 miles overnight from Indiana, said the exhaustion dulled his reaction. "I'm kind of numb from the drive... it didn't even phase me that much just because I'm kind of numb from the exhaustion of just driving that far," he said.

While shaken, he expressed relief that the violence didn’t spread beyond the immediate area. "I'm just glad, like I said, it wasn't me being involved in some type of incident with somebody else," he said.

What's next:

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has been asked to look into the use of force in this case.