Grovetown, GA. – On September 20, 2015, at approximately 8:15 PM, the GBI was requested by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to conduct an officer involved shooting investigation that occurred on Baker Place Road in Grovetown, Columbia County, Georgia.  At approximately 7:58 PM the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call concerning a suicidal subject walking on foot in the area of Baker Place Road. Preliminary information indicates while deputies were responding to the area, a DNR Ranger was also in the area conducting an unrelated investigation and was unaware of the 911 call concerning the suicidal subject. The DNR ranger made contact with the subject on Baker Place Road and during the encounter the subject produced a handgun. The DNR Ranger fired his firearm striking the subject. The subject was transported to Doctors Hospital in Augusta, Georgia where he died as a result of his injuries. The DNR Ranger was not injured during the incident.

The subject is identified as David Sean Owens, 28, of Grovetown, Georgia.  The GBI Medical Examiner’s Office will perform the autopsy at GBI headquarters in Decatur, Georgia on Tuesday, September 22, 2015.

The GBI will conduct an independent investigation to determine what occurred during the incident. When the investigation is complete it will be turned over to the Augusta Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for any action they deem appropriate.   

Contact Information:

Patrick Morgan (706) 595-2575