Suburban Atlanta police chief on leave after shooting wife early New Year’s Day
Peachtree City police Chief William McCollom called 911 around 4:15 a.m. Thursday to say he'd accidentally shot his wife, 58-year-old Margaret McCollom twice with his service weapon. Authorities later said she'd been shot only once. The victim was flown to a local hospital in critical condition and her husband is on leave as the shooting is investigated.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Thursday, January 1, 2015, 1:58 PM
- A
- A
- A
PEACHTREE POLICEPeachtree City Police Chief William McCollom shot his wife around 4:15 a.m. New Year's Day and called 911 to report the incident.
A suburban Atlanta police chief is on leave after he called 911 early New Year’s Day to report that he’d accidentally shot his wife twice, authorities said.
Police later said Margaret McCollom, 58, who is in critical condition at the Atlanta Medical Center, was only shot once after her husband, Peachtree City police Chief William McCollom fired his gun around 4:15 a.m. Thursday, authorities said.
The weapon used was the chief's service weapon, a 9-mm. Glock 17, police said. The shooting happened in the bedroom of their Peachtree City, Ga., home.
No charges have been filed, but William McCollom has been placed on administrative leave as the shooting is looked in to by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Peachtree City police said in a news release.
11 ALIVEAuthorities investigate the shooting along Autumn Leaf in Peachtree City, Ga.
The chief has been interviewed but authorities have been unable yet to speak with Margaret McCollom, GBI spokeswoman Sherry Lang said. William McCollom made the initial 911 call.
Griffin Circuit District Attorney Scott Ballard said his office is in "wait and see" mode as to "any criminal activity."
"There's no leanings one way or the other because we just don't know," he said at a Thursday afternoon news conference.
11 ALIVEThe investigation has been turned over to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Margaret McCollom was flown to the hospital after the early morning shooting at the couple’s Autumn Leaf home in the city, which sits some 30 miles southwest of Atlanta.
William McCollom joined the small city department in 2012, served as interim chief beginning in July and was named police chief in October, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
McCollom was described as a "well-loved, well-liked chief" with extensive law enforcement experience, Peachtree City police spokesman Lt. Mark Brown said. The department is "hurting at this point," Brown said, and concerned for both the chief and his badly wounded wife.
