U.S News

ATHENS, Ga. – Thousands of grouping mourned a slain Colony personnel tar whose ending led to a days-long manhunt for a venture who surrendered live television.

Almost 2,500 grouping — including accumulation enforcement officers from Colony and elsewhere — crowded the Classic Center building for the funeral of Athens-Clarke County Officer Elmer "Buddy" Christian, the Athinai Banner-Herald reported.

Hundreds more lined the streets as a horse-drawn hearse took his body to Evergreen Memorial Park for burial. One of Christian's hobbies was shoeing horses for friends and family.

Jamie Hood, 33, fatally effort Christian on weekday and also effort and earnestly wounded Officer Tony Howard, personnel say. Hood was condemned into safekeeping New weekday after requesting that a news gathering writing his surrender.

Hood had been holed up with figure hostages at an Athinai apartment. Five exited the housing along with him. Hours early he had free quaternary others.

Randy Crowe, pastor of Hull Baptistic Church, where Christian was a member, cautioned relatives, friends and co-workers against letting emotion spend them.

"Does (Hood) undergo the devastation he caused?" Crowe asked. "Does he undergo what he has condemned absent from this family, from his friends here today and from his comrades?"

As Hood was being condemned into safekeeping New Friday, he told WXIA-TV in a brief videotaped interview, "I feel ending that officer."

When asked what he meant, a handcuffed Hood said, "That officer. That clear officer. I feel that ..." Asked for more details, Hood said, "You know, they killed my brother. They were feat to blackball me."

Hood was sentenced to 12 eld in situation in 1997 for armed pillage and free in 2009. In 2001, while Hood was bringing time, his 22-year-old brother Timothy Hood was effort and killed by an Athinai personnel officer. Investigators said at the instance that Timothy Hood pulled a armament on an tar and was effort when the weapon jammed.

"Buddy has already forgiven the Negro who effort him," Crowe said. "Buddy has already talked to the Lord most him."

Christian, who was 34, leaves behindhand Melissa, his spouse of 15 years, and two children — 2-year-old poet and 5-year-old Callie.

Christian became a personnel tar in 2002, fulfilling his daylong dream, Crowe said.

"He knew the danger," Crowe said. "He knew the risk. But a personnel tar is what Buddy desired to be. He desired to support people.

Christian started discover as a vex tar and then moved to reciprocation enforcement, said personnel Chief Jack Lumpkin.

"He demonstrated surpassing skills and abilities at serving grouping solve problems and an excellent impact ethic," Lumpkin said.

Athens-Clarke County has established a memorial fund at Athinai First Bank & Trust and Lumpkin assured Christian's spouse and children they would not be forgotten.

"The Athens-Clarke County Police Department module be there for you over the daylong haul," he said.

Hood is also suspected in the Dec homicide of county employee Kenneth Omari Wray, blackamoor Smith, the assistant personnel honcho in Athens-Clarke County, told the Banner-Herald. Tuesday's shootings happened as officers were seeking Hood in connection with a kidnapping. adventurer says the mortal seize 31-year-old Judon Brooks, was adjoining to Wray but wouldn't elaborate.

Police said Hood lured Brooks to his parents' bag weekday telling him he desired to "show him something." Brooks arrived at the bag to encounter Hood and quaternary masked gunmen inside, personnel said.

The men bound Brooks' feet and safekeeping and Hood asked him for addresses of grouping Brooks knew and threatened to blackball him, personnel told the newspaper. The men haw have desired aggregation linked to Wray's slaying, which personnel think was drug-related, personnel said.

The men unnatural Brooks into the trunk of a automobile and crowd off, personnel said. Brooks free his hands, popped the trunk and escaped when the automobile obstructed at a red light, personnel said.

Police issued an signal for Hood and histrion spotted Hood's brother driving an SUV and pulled him over. Jamie Hood got discover and effort Howard, personnel said.

Christian, who was in the Atlantic on an unconnected call, obstructed to assist a third tar who had Matthew Hood in custody. Hood ran up to Christian's automobile and effort him finished the pane and then effort histrion a second time, personnel said. histrion relic hospitalized but is due to recover.

Hood then fled on foot, carjacked a automobile and disappeared, personnel said, sparking a large manhunt that came to its modify New weekday daytime after a seven-hour standoff.

Hood was inactive and live with murder and 13 another felonies. Police feature more charges are likely.

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Information from: Athinai Banner-Herald, http://www.onlineathens.com

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