A Lula man died Monday morning after being shot during a standoff with the Hall County SWAT team.
Hubert Stanley Tate, 65, was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville after a shootout with law enforcement officers. He died shortly afterwards.
On Monday, August 11, at approximately 8:30 a.m. an off-duty Gainesville police officer heard several gunshots and spotted a white male walking through downtown Lula holding a large caliber handgun. The perpetrator pointed the firearm at the off-duty officer and then walked into a heavily wooded area to his residence, which was later identified as a camper. A warrant for aggravated assault on a police officer was obtained for the perpetrator.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office responded to the location and set up a perimeter around the camper. Due to the serious nature of the call, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team responded and attempted negotiations with the man. As negotiators attempted to make contact with the man, he fired upon the SWAT Team. A member of the SWAT Team was struck by gunfire.
The deputy, Joe Groover, 35, underwent surgery on his arm for over four hours at Grady Hospital in Atlanta and is now in ICU.
During this incident the Lula Elementary School was placed on lockdown and a number of Hall County Deputies were stationed around the perimeter of the school for the protection of the students.
At this time, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has been called in to conduct an investigation into the incident.
