Georgia man shot by police who went to wrong home dies: media

ATLANTA (Reuters) - A man died on Thursday after being shot by police who may have been sent to the wrong address in response to a report of gunfire, according to local media reports.

Relatives of William Powell told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper that he died around 4 p.m. local time at the Atlanta Medical Center. Local broadcaster WSB-TV also reported the death.

Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) said Powell was armed with a handgun when an officer shot him in the neck after he did not comply with orders to drop his weapon outside his house in Stockbridge, south of Atlanta, on Tuesday night.

Powell's mother-in-law, Geraldine Huey, told the newspaper that Powell armed himself and went outside thinking he was checking out a possible intruder. Huey told the outlet she lives next door to Powell, a U.S. Air Force veteran.

The three officers were responding to a 911 caller who reported hearing gunshots and an unknown female yelling for help, GBI said on Wednesday. The bureau said preliminary reviews of the 911 call indicated the officers showed up to the wrong location.

Officials with the bureau could not immediately be reached on Thursday for comment regarding reports of Powell's death.

Law enforcement officials around the country are facing increasing scrutiny over a string of high-profile police killings.

(Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Writing by Ben Klayman and Curtis Skinner; editing by Dan Grebler and David Gregorio)