The case against a suspect in the deadly shooting inside a Buckhead nightclub last month has been sent to Superior Court, a Fulton County Magistrate Court judge ruled Friday.
Karanji Reese, 21, is accused of opening fire inside the Elleven45 Lounge on May 12, killing Mari Creighton, a 21-year-old college volleyball player from Stockbridge, and 20-year-old Nakyris Ridley, who police said was the intended target. Four others were shot but survived.
During Friday’s preliminary hearing, prosecutors played the club’s security footage that they say is the basis for charging Reese.
The footage showed a man, who Atlanta police homicide detectives believe was Reese, arriving at the club with a group of people around 2:15 a.m. The group enters the venue shortly after and huddles together for a short time as the jovial crowd mingles under the club’s neon lights.
About 10 minutes later, another man, who detectives said was Ridley, is seen in the footage speaking to a man before approaching Reese, Detective Latoya Francis testified. Less than a minute elapsed before Ridley punched Reese multiple times, prompting Reese to pull out a gun and begin shooting, Francis said.
Ridley is then seen falling in front of a seating booth as he attempts to run away along with the crowd. He died at the scene as a result of multiple gunshot wounds, Francis said.
She estimated that about 200 people were inside the club at the time, and one of the surviving victims was shot once in each leg.
The video did not show Creighton, who had reportedly been at the nightclub celebrating her niece’s 22nd birthday when she was shot. Her cause of death was a gunshot wound to her right lower extremity, Francis said in court.
Detectives quickly identified Reese as a suspect thanks to witnesses, including Ridley’s family, who saw him in the club and provided links to social media accounts. A photo lineup was then presented to the club’s head of security, who picked Reese out as the man he saw enter the club that night.
Francis said investigators have not determined a motive in the case, but that Reese and Ridley had previously been friends.
In Reese’s defense, his attorney asked that Judge Brandy Brooks dismiss the charges, arguing that the video does not clearly show his client firing a gun. He also noted that at least one shell casing of a different caliber was found, potentially pointing to a second shooter.
That did not dissuade the prosecution, which underscored to the judge that the “cameras captured the defendant, Mr. Reese — and his face — when he entered the club, and he remained within the viewable radius of the camera all the way up until the time that he fired the fatal shots at 2:25 a.m.”
Ultimately, Brooks declined to dismiss Reese’s charges.
It is now up to the Fulton District Attorney’s Office to present the case to a grand jury for potential indictment.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, there were several calls to shutter the club. Residents who live in the area cited a history of violence, including several shootings, and the city of Atlanta has taken the owners to court in an effort to close it permanently.
Creighton’s family has also sued the business, seeking an unspecified amount in damages. They’ve said it’s incomprehensible how an armed person was able to enter and cause “devastating harm,” especially given the history of violence on site, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported previously.
On Friday, Francis testified that the club’s head of security told her that their pat-down protocols are “very thorough” and that firearms are not allowed inside. But, she said, “people get weapons inside of different establishments all the time, whether they’re searched or not, because they have ways of hiding it.”
“And, from my understanding, the friend that was with him (Reese) is very closely connected with the club owner,” Francis added. “Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see (in the video) where the pat-down took place.”
As the legal battles play out, the once-popular club has remained closed.
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