GBI investigates officer involved shooting in Perry

Perry, GA (February 22, 2022) – The GBI is investigating an officer involved shooting Perry, GA. The Perry Police Department asked the GBI to conduct an independent investigation on Tuesday, February 22, 2022. One man was shot and has died. No officers were injured.

Preliminary information indicates that Perry Police Department officers responded to 115 Bedford Court in Perry after receiving a call about a suicidal man. When officers arrived, Matthew Deese, age 32, of Perry, GA, came out of the house with a gun in his hand. Officers made several attempts to get Deese to put the gun down, but he refused and barricaded himself inside the home. The Houston County Sheriff’s Office Special Response Team (SRT) was called to assist. After SRT arrived, negotiations continued with Deese, but were unsuccessful. During the incident, Deese was shot and taken to Navicent Health in Macon, where he was pronounced deceased. 

The GBI will conduct an independent investigation of the officer involved shooting. Once the investigation is completed, it will be turned over to the Houston County District Attorney’s Office for review. 

Note: The Georgia Open Records Act requires disclosure of initial incident report and arrest report if there is one. After that, investigation records are closed until conclusion. According to 2010 Georgia Code Title 50 O.C.G.A. 50-18-72(a)(4): “Public disclosure shall not be required for records that are records of law enforcement, prosecution, or regulatory agencies in any pending investigation or prosecution of criminal or unlawful activity, other than initial police arrest reports and initial incident reports; provided, however, that that an investigation or prosecution shall no longer be deemed to be pending when all direct litigation involving said investigation and prosecution has become final or otherwise terminated.”

As more information became available, you can read about it in the Houston Home Journal.

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