By Marla Jones, Managing Editor • marla@southerntorch.com (Submitted Photo)

GERALDINE, Ala. — State authorities have begun an investigation into an officer-involved shooting that occurred after a police chase began in Blount County and ended in DeKalb County. 

According to Chief Jamie Smith of the Albertville Police Department, the chase began in Blount County and the vehicle traveled on Highway 75 through Douglas and into DeKalb County where officers from both the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office and Geraldine Police Department joined them. 

After evading spike strips, the driver hit a DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office vehicle after attempting to hit officers in Geraldine. The driver was ultimately shot when the officers fired multiple rounds into the vehicle. 

The driver was taken to Marshall Medical Center South in Boaz before being airlifted to Huntsville Hospital, where at last report, he remains stable. 

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s State Bureau of Investigation is in charge of the investigation and officers with the Albertville Police Department are on paid leave as part of the department’s protocol.

More information will follow as this story continues to develop.