A Peach County deputy who was shot Sunday while responding to a call in Byron is on life support.
Daryl Smallwood, 39, is at Medical Center-Navicent Health in Macon. Sgt. Patrick Sondron, 41, died during the shooting.
The GBI says the suspect, Ralph Stanley Elrod, was shot in the abdomen during the shootout and was being treated at a Macon hospital Monday morning.
Investigators recovered more than 50 shell casings from the scene. The shooting happened around 5:30 p.m. Sunday on Hardison Road, near Highway 42.
GBI special agent in charge J.T. Ricketson said Smallwood and Sondron responded to a report of a dispute among neighbors. Two people riding on ATVs reported that they were confronted by an armed man.
The two Peach deputies arrived at the home of the person who phoned in the complaint, then went to Elrod's home.
Peach County Sheriff Terry Deese says the deputies were fired upon immediately and had little time to respond. Both of the deputies were wearing protective vests, according to the GBI.
Before joining the Peach County Sheriff's Office last year, Smallwood was a member of the Crisp County Sheriff's Office. Crisp County sent out a statement on the shooting.
"At this time, he (Smallwood) remains on life support," according to the statement. Crisp County Sheriff Billy Handcock said he recalls Smallwood as kind and gentle and he never received any community complaints about the officer.
