A man was shot by Jefferson County sheriff’s deputies following a traffic stop and chase in Center Point.

It all began about 9:48 a.m. Sunday when a deputy tried to pull over a motorist for a traffic violation. The driver refused to stop and fled into the parking lot of The Pointe apartments on Bond Circle, said sheriff’s Capt. David Agee.

Once at the dead end of the parking lot, the suspect left the car in drive but bailed from the vehicle. Agee said the man got out of the vehicle armed with a gun, and deputies fired on him. His car continued to roll and crashed into the front porch of an apartment.

Center Point Fire and Rescue transported the man to UAB Hospital’s Trauma Center with serious injuries. His condition wasn’t immediately available.

A man was taken to UAB Hospital Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019, after he was shot by Jefferson County sheriff's deputies following a traffic stop and brief chase.

Witnesses said the man got out of his car with his hands up, but Agee said he was indeed armed and SBI officials said they recovered the suspect’s gun. That gun, Agee said, turned out to be stolen Neighbors said they heard about four shots fired.

The deputy was not injured. "It’s a danger we face every day,''e Agee said, noting that a traffic violation likely would have yielded only a citation. “It’s shouldn’t come to deadly force for that, and that’s the danger law enforcement faces every day.”

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s State Bureau of Investigation is taking over the probe, which is standard procedure. Sheriff’s officials said any additional information will come from SBI.