Georgia sheriff refuses to talk to police about shooting death

By David Beasley ATLANTA (Reuters) - A Georgia sheriff being investigated for injuring a woman in a shooting called it a "tragic and heartbreaking accident" on Tuesday, but he has continued to refuse to talk to police about what happened, authorities said. Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill has not been charged in the shooting, which he so far has declined to discuss, said Gwinnett County police spokesman Deon Washington. Hill critically injured 43-year-old Gwenevere McCord, a real estate agent and friend, inside a model show home in a subdivision in Gwinnett County on Sunday, police said. Hill and McCord were alone in the home when the shooting occurred, according to Gwinnett police. Hill reported the shooting as an accident. He called McCord "very dear to me" in a statement posted on the Clayton County Sheriff's Office Facebook page. "I have been entirely focused on Gwenevere and her family," Hill wrote. "I will continue to pray unceasingly for her recovery." Hill, 50, first served as sheriff in Clayton County from 2005 to 2008. He was re-elected in 2012 after being indicted on corruption charges accusing him of misusing county-issued credit cards. A jury acquitted him in 2013, according to Clayton County court records. (Reporting by David Beasley, editing by Letitia Stein and Cynthia Osterman)