Tamara Tuitt-Bartlett, 49, was shot dead inside her Suwanee home during what authorities described as a domestic argument. Deputies say the shooting occurred Saturday evening in the Villages of Shakerag subdivision after Tuitt-Bartlett’s teenage son fled the house and went to a neighbor’s home for help. Officers found Tuitt-Bartlett deceased in an upstairs bedroom; her son was taken to a local hospital and reported in stable condition.

Investigators identified 43-year-old Eric Sumner of Suwanee as the suspect. Sumner reportedly fled the scene and was later caught by Monroe County deputies after a brief chase on I-75. He was booked on murder and two counts of aggravated assault with intent to commit murder and held in the Forsyth County Jail without bond. Court filings show Tuitt-Bartlett had sought a restraining order against Sumner in April, citing increasing violence and an earlier incident in which her son had called 911.

Tuitt-Bartlett served nearly two decades as a Master Deputy with the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office and is remembered by colleagues and family for her dedication and compassion. Four years earlier the family had lost her 23-year-old son, Richard Bartlett III, in an unsolved hit-and-run on McGinnis Ferry Road. Does anyone in the Suwanee area have information about the events that led up to that night or knew Tamara and her family?