Paulding County Sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Cunningham was tragically killed in an ambush while responding to a domestic dispute in Georgia. Cunningham and another deputy were met with gunfire upon arriving at the scene, with Cunningham being shot as soon as he exited his patrol vehicle. Despite efforts from additional deputies to reach him, Cunningham was unable to receive aid and was later pronounced dead at a hospital. The suspect, identified as James Samuel Atkins, was found dead at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, while a female victim, Kim Thao Vu, was injured and hospitalized. Cunningham, a 30-year-old father of two, had been with the sheriff’s office for two years and is the first deputy in the county’s history to die in the line of duty. The incident remains under investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Sheriff Gary Gulledge described Cunningham as a great deputy and expressed deep sorrow over the senseless violence. A memorial patrol vehicle has been set up outside the sheriff’s office for the public to pay their respects. Gulledge urged everyone to keep Cunningham’s family in their prayers, as both blood and blue families are grieving his loss.
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Deputy in Georgia killed in the line of duty during domestic dispute response.
