A 35 year old Lafayette, Georgia man died by his own hand, after crashing his car into a ditch on Monday night following a chase that began in Chattooga County – and finally ended in Cherokee County.

According to Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson, his office received a call reporting a shooting on Old Dalton Road, just after 8:30 Monday night – and, when deputies arrived on the scene they found 63 year old Roy Leonard McKeehan, Jr. dead of an apparent gunshot wound and trauma to the head and neck area.

They learned that a man and woman had left the residence, just moments before law enforcement had arrived – and quickly put out a lookout order for that vehicle; the suspects were soon spotted, by a Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office Deputy, near the Pennville Wal-Mart. The driver refused to pull over and a chase began, which eventually crossed over into Alabama.

According to Cherokee County Sheriff Jeff Shaver multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the area on County Road 41 near Ringgold Crossroads – where spike strips were placed across the roadway; the suspect ran over the strips, lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a ditch.

Officers approached the vehicle and discovered that Daniel Chad Marks had apparently taken his own life – dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.  Cherokee County Coroner, Broderick Smith, declared Marks dead at the scene.

the passenger in the vehicle – a woman whose name has yet-to-be released – was treated by EMS personnel for minor injuries.  She is being questioned by law enforcement regarding the series of events which left two people dead.

Agencies involved in the on-going investigation include: Walker and Chattooga County, Georgia Investigators / DeKalb and Cherokee County Sheriffs Office Deputies & Investigators / Alabama State Troopers / The JSU Centre for Applied Forensics / Officers with the Centre, Cedar Bluff & Leesburg Police Departments.