Barnesville officer hits, kills 2 pedestrians

BARNESVILLE, Ga. — Investigators are looking into what caused a police officer to hit and kill two young men as they crossed a Georgia highway.
 
The two men were shopping at a Lamar County convenience store early Friday morning. As they crossed over Highway 7, a Barnesville police cruiser hit and killed both men.
 
While investigators work to piece together how it happened, two families are now mourning them and a police department is in shock.
 
Sandra McDougal lost her son, 21-year old Quentin Byrd.
 
"He was a sweet, loving young man," McDougal said.
 
Surveillance video showed Byrd and his friend Justin Sullivan shopping inside a nearby convenience store. Both men died minutes later just yards away.
 
"Just an all around sweet young man. There's nothing that you can say that was bad about him," McDougal said.
 
Barnesville Police Maj. Craig Cooper said Officer Terry Belvin was driving south on Highway 7 looking for a dangerous driver. After having no luck, he'd just turned off his lights and sirens.
 
"Before he could respond, they were in front of him and pretty much attempted to swerve around them, but unfortunately they kept going in the same direction," Cooper said.
 
Georgia State Patrol is investigating the crash and how fast Belvin was going.
 
"He's doing fine physically. He's having some struggle dealing with what occurred, of course," Cooper said.
 
Cooper wanted to express the department's sympathies to the victims' family.
 
"We'd like to extend our deepest sympathies to the families not just as their police agency, but as parents, too," Cooper said.
 
McDougal said comfort will only come with answers.
 
"I'm never going to know what really happened. I just want some closure," McDougal said.

WSBTV