HORTENSE — A Blackshear man reportedly led law enforcement officers on a two-county car chase ending in an apparent selfinflicted gun shot wound near Hortense Thursday night.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) is investigating the death of Corey Ray Beale, 33, of Blackshear, at the request of the Brantley County Sheriff’s Office following a traffic stop and chase which started along U.S. Highway 84 in Blackshear.
Brantley County is served by the Kingsland office.
“We secured the scene until the Georgia State Patrol SCRT (Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team) and GBI arrived,” said Brantley County Sheriff Len Davis of the February 13 incident. “We were not actively involved, but were prepared to put stop sticks down.”
The investigation shows a Blackshear Police Department officer initiated a traffic stop on the car driven by Beale. He stopped for a brief interaction with the officer before speeding away and leading police on a chase that eventually entered Brantley County.
The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office and Georgia State Patrol joined the chase. A Georgia State Trooper performed a precision immobilization technique (PIT) maneuver on Beale’s car, ending the chase along Georgia Highway 32 near the intersection of Highways 32 and U.S. 301 at Mile Marker 4.
After the car came to a stop, Beale then shot himself while inside the car. Beale was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Georgia State Patrol is investigating the accident involving the PIT maneuver. A PIT maneuver is performed by apatrol vehicle coming along side a pursued vehicle and tapping it to cause it to spin out and stop.
Beale will be taken to the GBI Medical Examiner’s Office in Pooler for an autopsy.
The GBI will conduct an independent investigation into Beale’s death.
