Deputy shot while serving warrant dies days later

ATLANTA (WANF/Gray News) - A deputy in Georgia who was shot in the head during a search operation has died.

The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office announced 30-year-old Taylor Bristow’s death in a Facebook post early Saturday morning.

“Tonight, we mourn the passing of Investigator Bristow, who has left this earth and gained his heavenly wings,” the statement said. “He served our community with unwavering passion and dedicated his life to protecting the citizens of Carroll County.”

Bristow was shot Tuesday morning while deputies were executing a search warrant for child exploitation material at a home in Carrollton.

According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the suspect, identified as 40-year-old Christopher Bly, went back inside the home after answering the door and came back with a handgun.

Bly then fired multiple shots, striking himself and Bristow, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Bristow was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he later died.

“We are deeply saddened and at a loss for words,” the sheriff’s office said in their statement. “Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers, and kindly respect their privacy as they grieve this profound loss.”

In a statement posted to X, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp extended condolences to Bristow’s family and the law enforcement community.

“Our hearts are heavy this morning as we join the Bristow family, the Carroll Co. Sheriff’s Office, and all Georgians in mourning the loss of Investigator Taylor Bristow,” he said. “May God give them strength and comfort during this painful time, and may He keep all our law enforcement safe.”

Bristow was an investigator who had been with the department for six years.

A procession will escort Bristow’s body from Grady Memorial Hospital to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s crime lab on Saturday, according to the sheriff’s office.

West Georgia First Responders is hosting a site to donate to Bristow’s family, the sheriff’s office said. They said this is the only legitimate site to donate.

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