Police in Atlanta, George say at least two men opened fire at a vehicle on the Fourth of July, fatally striking one of the occupants: 8-year-old Secoriea Turner.
In a press conference on Sunday, Interim Police Chief Rodney Bryant said that officers were dispatched to the the area of University Avenue and I-75/85. They learned that the victim was being taken to a hospital. Once at the facility, Turner received treatment, but she didn’t survive.
According to Bryant, she’d been riding with her mother and an adult friend when they encountered a group of armed individuals who blocked the entrance to a parking lot. At some point, someone in the group opened fire multiple times, striking the child, Bryant said. The driver drove to Atlanta Medical Center for help, he said.
In the press conference, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said that an illegal barrier had been previously put up at the site, but it had been erected again by the time of the shooting.
One of the shooters was described as wearing “all black dressed like a bounty hunter,” police said. The other one wore a white T-shirt.
There is a $10,000 reward to help solve the murder. Tipsters are encouraged to call 404-577-TIPS, or Detective J. Shepard at 404-617-3012.
The incident happened near the Wendy’s where Now-Former Police Officer Garrett Rolfe shot and killed Rayshard Brooks. It also occurred amid a spate of shootings in the city.
“I wish that I could stand here as mayor and tell you what the answers are and what the solutions are, but it’s simple,” she said. “We’ve got to stop this. We are doing each other more harm than any police officer on this force. We’ve had over 75 shootings in this city over the past several weeks. You can’t blame that on APD.”
[Screengrab via 11 Alive]