THOMAS COUNTY, Ga. (WTXL) — A Thomas County Sheriff's deputy is in stable condition recovering from surgery on Monday morning at a Thomasville hospital after being shot 3 times while off-duty during a family gathering over the weekend.
Thomas County Sheriff's Captain Steven Jones said the off-duty deputy was shot twice in the head and once in the back while trying to help a family friend named Terry Sloan get home safely from a family party on Midway Road on Friday night.
"Half an inch or one inch either way and he wouldn't be with us, it's a true miracle he's alive," said Jones.
Captain Jones said Sloan was intoxicated and started shooting at the Deputy out of nowhere. Jones said Sloan was arrested on Saturday with the help of other local law enforcement. He's currently in a Thomas County jail.
Captain Jones said the whole community is rallying behind the Deputy and it's truly a miracle that he's alive.
This is the 3rd shooting in 2022 that involved a deputy in Thomas County, according to Jones, which he says is a sign of what's happening across the country.
"It's so unlike Thomas County, it's so unlike this area, we just don't have these kind of things happen. It's going on everywhere, why, that's the question we're asked all of the time, why all of this violence, why all of this gun crime going on...I wish I could answer that," said Jones.
The deputy is doing well after surgery Monday morning at the hospital in Thomasville and the captain says he'll likely return to the force after he recovers.
They plan to release the deputy's name once they speak with his family and they give the ok.
