UPDATE. 3:00 P.M. SATURDAY: The GBI Saturday identified the 17-year-old who was killed as Brayden Hemphill, age 17, of Sugar Hill.
EARLIER STORY. 11:00 P.M. FRIDAY:
A 17-year-old was shot and killed by Gwinnett County Police Friday afternoon in in Sugar Hill after, officers said, he ran toward them, swinging a knife. The events unfolded about 4:30 near the roundabout at Whitehead Road and West Broad Street. Police said the young man had called emergency dispatchers and said that he was a danger to himself and others.
GWINNETT P.D. NEWS RELEASE:
“As police officers responded to the scene, the Gwinnett County Police Behavioral Health Unit was alerted, and a licensed mental health clinician was immediately able to start to the scene. While on the way to the location, that trained clinician called the male and spoke with him over the phone. The male told the clinician that he was suicidal and suffering from depression.
As officers arrived at the location, they encountered the male in the roadway at the roundabout. Officers parked down the road from the male and gave him commands to drop a knife that he was holding in his hand. As officers and the clinician tried to negotiate with the male for several minutes, the male began charging at two of the officers in a sprint. As the male approached the officers he swung the knife and the two officers fired their weapons. The male was struck at least one time. Officers immediately called for medical units from the Gwinnett County Fire Department, however, the male died at the scene from his injuries.
The investigation of this officer involved shooting will be handled by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI). Their investigators were notified immediately, per Gwinnett County Police policy. The names of all parties are being withheld until the next of kin can be notified.”