Officers in the small town of Barnesville could hear the shots reverberating against the walls of their police station Tuesday evening. But after running to the nearby scene, they found only the aftermath — a woman dead and two others injured.
After the last shell casing hit the ground, the accused shooter traveled about 50 miles north to Atlanta, where he died from a self-inflected gunshot wound, according to the GBI.
The incident in Lamar County shocked the tight-knit community of about 7,000, which is known for welcoming others with open arms, police Chief Belinda Penamon told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. It was the first homicide in Barnesville since 2021.
”This is a nice, quiet place to live,” she said.
Officers received a call at around 5:50 p.m. about three people shot on Carey J. Buckner Street, within 500 feet of the police station, according to the GBI. The alleged gunman, Eric Spradley, 33, pulled up, shot the victims from his car and drove away, officials said.
Yasmine Wright, 33, died at the scene, while two other victims, a man and a woman, were taken to hospitals, the GBI said. They were not publicly identified and their conditions were not released.
The GBI did not say if the shooter knew the victims. An investigation is ongoing.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Barnesville police at 770-358-1234 or the GBI at 478-445-4173.
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