COWETA COUNTY, Ga. — Coweta County Fire Rescue escorted home the body of a beloved fire battalion chief who died in an Alabama shooting.
Battalion Chief Bart Cauthen worked with the department for more than 24 years. The department lined up for a procession on Thursday.
“Coweta Fire Rescue was blessed with love from all the citizens, communities, and public safety agencies bring Battalion Chief Bart Cauthen home to Coweta today,” the department wrote.
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Cauthen died on Sunday in Chambers County, Alabama. Deputies said he had stopped to help two people who had hit a deer. Cauthen and the driver went to get help when a homeowner who lived in the area shot them.
Deputies identified the suspect as William Randall Franklin and say they aren’t sure why he started shooting. At some point, one of the two men shot Franklin back.
Cauthen died at the scene. Paramedics took the driver who hit the deer and Franklin to local hospitals. Franklin has since been released and booked at Muscogee County Jail. He is waiting extradition to Alabama.
Funeral arrangements for Cauthen will held next week. A visitation is scheduled from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday at Unity Baptist Church at 311 Smokey Road in Newnan. Cauthen’s memorial service will be Tuesday at 2 p.m. at the church.
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