COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Metro Atlanta families with loved ones deployed in D.C. want to know if they will return home sooner than expected.
On Wednesday, two National Guard troops ordered to patrol near the White House were shot and critically wounded.
“This is definitely new territory,” said Marc Benjamin.
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Benjamin is a West Point graduate and a former U.S. Army Captain. He is examining the shooting through a unique lens because he was also a Supervisory Special Agent for the FBI in Atlanta.
The FBI is the agency leading the investigation into the shooting in D.C.
“They’re going to scour his social media presence. They’ll look at his telephone for any communications he’s had with other people, and maybe even try to determine his previous locations,” said Benjamin. “They’ll review surveillance video and try to figure out who else he’s talked to, and maybe that will unveil a motive.”
To determine that motive, investigators will likely consider President Donald Trump’s executive order declaring crime an emergency in D.C.
The National Guard was activated in August and directed to perform law enforcement support in the state’s capital.
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“I think you have to consider the fact that there has been a lot of public discourse as to whether or not that’s the right thing to do to deploy soldiers on the civilian populous,” said Benjamin.
Georgia’s Department of Defense ordered 316 troops to support the mission in September.
Families expected them to return home by early December.
Channel 2’s Courtney Francisco asked the Georgia DOD if that date could change in the wake of the shooting.
“We do have about 300 National Guardsmen in DC, and we expect to receive them back in early December. Currently, they are under the command and control of JTF-DC. You can reach out to JTF-DC for official statements while they are under their control,” Col. Will Cox said.
Channel 2 Action News is waiting to hear back from commanders in D.C.
“I think that’s going to be on the table. Especially, since there’s a ruling in the court saying, ‘Hey, we need to pull the troops out of these cities,’” said Benjamin.
The Georgia Guard deployment as part of the Joint Task Force- DC is scheduled to end in December. Our prayers remain with the guardsmen injured today and the safety of all our guardsmen working to secure our nation’s capital," Governor Brian Kemp’s Press Secretary Carter Chapman wrote in a statement.
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