DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A traffic stop took a violent turn when a suspect fired shots at two police officers outside a motel.
The officers fired back and hit the driver, who is now in critical condition. Neither officer was hurt during the shooting.
DeKalb County police tell Channel 2's Lauren Pozen the officer-involved shooting happened at the Economy Hotel around 12:45 a.m. Saturday.
The two officers were working off-duty security at the motel when they noticed a car with a fake license plate. They pulled the driver into the motel parking lot and said there was only one person inside the car.
Police told Pozen the driver got out to speak with the officers. That's when he pulled out a handgun and shot at both officers, according to police.
"The suspect discharged his firearm several times. We did recover a handgun and several shell casings from that handgun at the scene," DeKalb County police Chief James Conroy said at the scene.
Pozen asked Conroy how the officers were able to determine the driver had a fake license plate.
"Almost looks like someone created it on the computer to look like an authentic license plate, but it is not. It is not reflective. It is not metallic," he said.
DeKalb police alerted the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which is now investigating. The GBI confirmed it is the 30th shooting involving law enforcement in Georgia this year.
Both officers are on paid administrative leave until the investigation wraps up.
[INTERACTIVE MAP: Shootings involving Georgia law enforcement for 2019]