GBI probing fatal shooting by police in Savannah

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) A handcuffed man was shot and killed by police Thursday in west Savannah, authorities said, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is looking into it. <br /> <br /> Police had arrested Charles Smith, 29, on outstanding warrants and put him in a patrol car with his hands cuffed behind his back, GBI spokeswoman Sherry Lang said in a written statement. Smith was able to move his hands to the front of his body and kick out a window of the patrol car, Lang said. <br /> <br /> Officers noticed that Smith had a gun when he tried exiting the patrol car and he was shot by an officer. A gun was found under Smith's body and the incident was captured on video, Lang said. <br /> <br /> The shooting is still under investigation and findings will be turned over to the Eastern Judicial Circuit District Attorney's Office. An autopsy for Smith is scheduled Friday at the GBI's crime lab in Savannah, Lang said. Details on Smith's outstanding warrants weren't immediately available. <br /> <br /> Ten-year police department veteran David Jannot was put on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department spokesman Julian Miller said in a written statement. <br /> <br /> After the shooting, crowds of onlookers gathered near the scene. Mayor Edna Jackson urged citizens to be patient with law enforcement officials while they investigate. Jackson said she met with Smith's family, west Savannah residents and police leaders after the shooting. <br /> <br /> ``When the answers come, we will be open, transparent and forthcoming,'' Jackson said in a written statement. ``We will remain in continuous communication with the family.''

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