Man killed on Gwinnett County bus identified; GBI says he was shot with his own gun – WSB-TV Channel 2

ATLANTA — The Georgia Bureau of Investigation says the man who hijacked a Gwinnett County transit bus, killed someone on board and led police on a chase, took the gun from another passenger.

The GBI said the incident began around 4:20 p.m. on Ivan Allen Boulevard in downtown Atlanta. The Gwinnett County bus picked up passengers, including Joseph Grier.

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Grier had been at the scene of a mass shooting at the Peachtree Center hours earlier.

According to the GBI, Grier was talking with passengers on the bus and got into an argument with another man. The other passenger, identified on warrants as Ernest Byrd, pulled out a gun. Grier then took Byrd's gun and began threatening passengers with it.

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Grier then shot Byrd in the leg with his own gun and ordered the bus driver to leave, according to the GBI.

Multiple law enforcement agencies then chased the bus as it traveled on I-85 north into Gwinnett and then DeKalb counties. During the chase, the bus hit several other cars and several police vehicles.

The police slashed the tires of the bus, but it continued to move. A Georgia State Patrol officer then fired his weapon into the engine compartment of the bus in an attempt to cause it to crash.

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The chase ended on Hugh Howell Road in Stone Mountain. Grier was taken into custody. Byrd was transported to a local hospital and pronounced dead. The bus driver was also taken to hospital.

The GBI has not released the identity or current condition of the bus driver.

More than a dozen other bus passengers were able to get off safely.

The GBI will conduct an independent investigation into the use of force.

Grier now faces more than a dozen charges, including murder.

1 dead after shooting on hijacked Gwinnett County bus, wildcat police pursue I-85

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