At the request of 15th District Attorney General Tommy Thompson, TBI Special Agents continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding an officer-involved shooting that occurred Tuesday night in Mt. Juliet.
The incident happened at approximately 10 p.m. at the on-ramp onto I-40W from Mt. Juliet Road at exit 226. Initial reports from the scene indicate that police officers from the Mt. Juliet Police Department received information about a stolen vehicle, and attempted to pull the driver over. The driver, later identified as Deantuan McDuffie (DOB 03/24/1991), failed to stop, and attempted to drive onto the interstate before crashing the vehicle into the guardrail on the ramp. Initial reports indicate the officers were outside of their cars, behind McDuffie’s vehicle, when he put his vehicle into reverse in the officers’ direction. At least one officer fired, striking McDuffie. He was transported to a hospital with what are believed to be non-life-threatening injuries. Three other passengers in the vehicle received what appeared to be superficial injuries from the wreck. One person was transported to a hospital for observation. Two others denied medical care at the scene. No officers were injured.
The investigation remains active and ongoing, as TBI Agents continue to gather any and all relevant evidence, interviews, and information. Throughout the process, investigative findings will be shared with the District Attorney General for his further review and consideration.
The TBI does not identify the officers involved in these types of incidents and instead, refers questions of that nature to the respective department to answer as it sees fit.
As a reminder, the TBI acts solely as fact-finders in its cases and does not determine whether the actions of an officer were justified in these types of matters. That decision rests solely with the District Attorney General requesting TBI’s involvement.
Any updates on this investigation will be posted online at TBINewsroom.com.
TBINewsroom.com 