Witnesses say a crowd of more than 100 teenagers gathered at Atlantic Station on Sunday night before random gunfire prompted an officer to return fire, striking one teenage suspect.
In recently released audio from multiple 911 calls, witnesses described a chaotic scene unfolding at the popular shopping and dining destination. Callers reported fights breaking out among the crowd, which eventually escalated to gun violence.
Atlanta police officers responded to a disturbance call on 17th Street just after 10 p.m. and found a large crowd gathered in the aftermath of a shooting, officials said. According to the GBI, the shooting was the result of an argument between two groups that started at the Market Street intersection, one block north of the Dillard’s department store.
In the 911 audio, at least two callers reported countless teenagers who refused to leave the property after being asked. Both callers said fights were starting to break out among groups.
“We have over 100 juveniles on the property fighting each other and starting fights all over the place,” a caller who identified herself as a security employee told dispatch. “They are just running and fighting ... we need some assistance ASAP, please.”
Things escalated and frantic callers began alerting emergency dispatch of a shooting in the area, scattering the crowds.
“I heard gunshots and like, I was driving by and I saw like a bunch of people running,” another caller said. “It was at least 20 or 30 shots.”
A GSU officer working an extra job and a security guard attempted to intervene as the gunshots rang out, GSU interim police Chief Anthony Coleman said. After seeing a 16-year-old “actively firing shots into a crowd,” the GSU officer shot the suspect, Coleman said.
One worried caller begged police for help as she watched. The scene was so chaotic that she was unsure of what transpired.
“We need APD immediately; someone got shot at Atlantic Station,” she said. “We have a police officer that got shot or shot someone. We need help immediately.”
Over the course of the 4-minute call with dispatch, the caller eventually realized that the officer was kneeling by an individual and told dispatch an officer had not been shot. The officer gave first aid to the teen until Atlanta police arrived and the boy was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital, Coleman confirmed.
The boy was said to be stable as of Wednesday afternoon, according to Coleman. No other injuries were reported.
“We are aware of the incident that occurred late Sunday night on 17th Street,” an Atlantic Station spokesperson told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution via email. “The safety and well-being of our community is our top priority and we are working with law enforcement as they investigate this matter.”
The incident was the 99th officer-involved shooting the GBI has been asked to investigate in the state this year. On Monday, the agency investigated its 100th such shooting. The AJC also tracks officer-involved shootings that don’t involve the GBI, and those numbers sometimes differ from the GBI’s tally.
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