GBI Investigates Shooting of 42-Year-Old Adairsville Man During Domestic Dispute

At the request of the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office, GBI agents are investigating an officer-involved shooting in Bartow County, GA. James Lee Rourks, 42, of Adairsville, GA, was shot and injured during the incident. No officers were injured.

Late Monday night, September 2, 2024, the Adairsville Police Department responded to a disturbance at a home on Barnsley Village Drive in Adairsville. A woman had called 911 but abruptly hung up. Rourks called 911 from the same number shortly after and told the operator everything was fine. Officers arrived and were informed by Rourks’ wife of a domestic dispute and that Rourks had a gun. When Rourks reentered the home and refused to comply with officers’ commands, the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office was called for assistance with a potential barricaded gunman. Deputies entered the house and encountered Rourks, at which point one deputy fired and injured him.

Rourks was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. He faces charges from the Adairsville Police Department of aggravated assault by strangulation and interference with a 911 call.

The GBI will conduct an independent investigation, and the case file will be submitted to the Bartow County District Attorney’s Office for review once the investigation is complete.