Fatal Officer-Involved Shooting in Cobb County, GBI Investigating

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) is looking into an officer-involved shooting incident that occurred in Cobb County, Georgia. The Cobb County Police Department requested the GBI to conduct an independent investigation on May 17, 2024.

The incident resulted in the death of Clifford Jacoby Beck, aged 40, from Griffin, GA. No officers sustained injuries during the encounter.

According to preliminary information, around 2:40 p.m., a Cobb County Police Officer spotted a stolen box-style truck in the vicinity of Mableton Parkway and Veterans Memorial Highway. Additional units were called in as they pursued the stolen vehicle. The pursuit led to the parking lot of a gas station at the intersection of Old Floyd Road and Fontaine Road, where officers attempted to block the truck.

Upon confrontation, a passenger in the truck promptly exited and complied with officers’ instructions. However, the driver, identified as Beck, attempted to flee by driving into officers’ vehicles. In response, officers discharged their weapons, striking Beck. Subsequently, the truck’s tires continued to spin, leading to a fire that engulfed both the truck and a patrol car.

Officers managed to extricate Beck from the vehicle, and emergency medical services (EMS) personnel along with firefighters provided medical aid while extinguishing the fire. Beck was then transported to a local hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. The Cobb County Medical Examiner’s Office will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

The GBI will proceed with an independent investigation, and upon its completion, the case file will be forwarded to the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office for review.