‘DOMESTIC INCIDENT’

Alabama Judge ‘Seriously Injured’ in Shooting, Son Arrested as Suspect

Police went on a 45-minute manhunt before finally tracking down and arresting the son.

An Alabama circuit court judge is in serious condition after being shot in what police describe as a domestic incident, with his son taken into custody as the suspect. Law enforcement responded to Judge Johnny Hardwick’s home on Saturday afternoon, where they believe an altercation led Hardwick’s 36-year-old son, Khalfani, to shoot his father before fleeing the scene, according to local reports. It was not immediately clear what caused the fight, and authorities engaged in a 45-minute manhunt for the younger Hardwick before finally locating and arresting him. Khalfani Hardwick has been hit with charges for physical violence before; in 2014, he pled guilty to a second-degree assault charge but served no prison time. According to local reports, the younger Hardwick admitted to shooting the victim in the head in that earlier case, downgrading the charges from attempted murder to second-degree assault. His father has held a decades-long career in public service in Montgomery, Alabama, and was recently named the president of the Alabama Association of Circuit Court Judges.