HIRAM — Several news agencies and the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office all confirmed the horrible news from Saturday night: a deputy is dead, another wounded and the suspect responsible seems to have shot themselves.
The Paulding County Sheriff’s Office first posted the news last night that one of their deputies – Brandon Cunningham – had been shot along with another individual not yet named in an incident in a Hiram neighborhood on Saturday evening.
Per the Sheriff’s Office’s post on Saturday, they were dealing with an active shooter situation following the incident, where the suspect barricaded themselves into a residence following an initial response at 6:15 p.m. on Foggy Creek Lane.
Cunningham, 30, leaves behind a wife and two children. He had been mandated for just the past two years as a law enforcement officer.
The shooting death announced by Sheriff Gary Gulledge later in the night was the first experienced by the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office.
Per reports from other news outlets, the shooter – who has yet to be identified – was alleged to have ambushed Cunningham and other deputies, and continued shooting at them as more law enforcement officers arrived on the scene.
The suspect is also alleged to have taken their life after barricading themselves inside the house.
A second victim in the incident – a woman who had also not yet been named – was shot and rushed to Wellstar Paulding Hospital for treatment. She was last listed in critical but stable condition.
Hundreds of officers were involved in the incident on Saturday, including the Paulding County SWAT Team.
Check back for additional details as they become available.
