JEFFERSON, Georgia (AP) -- An inmate in chains and leg irons grabbed a deputy's gun and shot him outside a county courthouse Monday but was gunned down by other deputies as he drove away in a police van.
The deputy was returning four prisoners to jail when one of them attacked him, Sheriff Stan Evans said.
"At some point, the inmate obtained the officer's weapons, shot him apparently three times, then took control of the van," Evans said.
The inmate, who was not identified, got only about 100 yards before he was shot by two deputies, the sheriff said.
Television reports showed a deputy's van crashed into a chain-link fence along a lane leading to the Jackson County Courthouse. The van's windshield had three bullet holes.
Deputy Kimsey Gray, a 14-year veteran, suffered gunshot wounds to the abdomen, left arm and right leg, but they did not appear to be life-threatening, said Dr. Leon Haley Jr., chief of the emergency room at Grady Hospital in Atlanta, where the deputy was taken by helicopter.
The police chief said the inmate was arrested in Jefferson last week and charged with armed robbery. The inmate's condition was not immediately known.
The courthouse was briefly shut down after the 4:30 p.m. shooting.
Evans said the deputy had followed policy that requires inmates be transported with belly chains and leg irons and accompanied by an officer. The incident remained under investigation.
Jefferson is about 60 miles northeast of Atlanta.