The gunman fired in Atlanta on Friday afternoon, shooting near both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Emory University campuses, killing an officer who was responding to the call of an active shooter, officials said.
Officials have found the suspect injured by a bullet on the second floor of the building that houses the CVS pharmacy. He died of injuries at the scene, Atlanta Police Chief Darrin Siebaum said.
Here’s what we know about filming:
How did the filming unfold?
Schierbaum said he received a 911 call about an active shooter around 4:50pm on 1600 Clifton Road in front of the CDC campus. Around that time, nearby Emory University sent a warning that there was an active shooter situation on campus. Both Emory and CDC’s Royval Campus have been locked down.
When officers responded to the scene, Cielbaum said he had found a seriously injured DeKalb County official. He was taken to Emory University Hospital, where he died of injury.
Schierbaum said officers heard gunshots inside the CVS of the intersection retailer and apartment buildings and entered the building to try to find the shooter.
The suspect was found on the second floor. Schierbaum said he was hit by a shooting, but the officer doesn’t know if the wound was self-harm or from the police.
He died at the scene, Cielbaum said. His identity has not been disclosed.
Were there any victims?
The injured DeKalb County Police Officer died of his injuries, said Greg Padrick, interim chief of the DeKalb County Police Department.
The DeKalb County Police Department has identified the officer as David Rose, 33.
He joined the department in September at the Police Academy and graduated in March, officials said.
“He was committed to serving the community, and at this point we are seeking community prayers,” Padrick said. “It’s a noble profession that we all do. We answered the call to serve our community, and he gave his life to his commitment to serve others.”
He left one halfway through, leaving his wife and two children behind, said DeCalb County CEO Lorraine Cochran Johnson.
“I have a mother, a father, and a sibling and we share this traumatic loss,” she said.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said no civilians were injured in the shooting. A CVS representative said no one in their store was injured.
Four other people took him to the hospital where he was treated for symptoms of stress and anxiety, Cielbaum said.
CDC building was hit
CDC director Susan Monares said four buildings on campus were attacked while filming. Authorities were not aware of the injuries that occurred there.
Monales said she was “grief by today’s attacks” and thanked local officials for “helping preventing further harm to staff and the community.”
She said the CDC campus was closed as officials investigated the shooting.
Schierbaum said investigators are considering whether the rounds fired at the CDC building were intentional.
“Several rounds have been fired. We believe in law enforcement and potentially in the CDC,” he said.
Did you have any motivation?
When asked if the shooter was believed to have targeted the CDC, Dickens said the investigation was in preliminary stages and could not say more about possible motives.
He called the suspect “a known person who may be interested in certain things and cannot be confident and correctly known until the investigation is complete.”
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation into a shooting, officials said.
What did the official say?
Gov. Brian Kemp condemned the shooting and denounced the state’s second shooting in a week.
“Twice this week, crazy criminals are targeting innocent Georgians,” Kemp said on X, referring to the shooting at Fort Stewart two days ago.
He said, “helpfully thanking the “brave first responders” who rushed towards danger to subduing shooters and save lives, and reminded them how important they were.
“We ask that we take part in embracing them in our prayers, along with those who were hurt tonight near the CDC Center,” he said.
D-Ga. Sen. Rafael Warnock of the group said he was monitoring the shooting and praying for the officers killed and all students and faculty members.
“It’s devastating that our community is facing another tragedy of gun violence,” Warnock wrote in X.
FBI director Kash Patel said the agency will provide full support to Georgia officials after the shootings.
“Pray for the family, friends and colleagues of this hero who acted quickly to protect others and make the ultimate sacrifice,” Patel told X.
Dickens said gun violence, like the kind that exploded on Friday, indicates that there is a need for a national conversation about gun violence.
“A mass shooting, active shooter scenarios should not be the norm,” Dickens said.
Second shooting in Georgia in a week
The shootings on Friday came two days after five service members were injured at Fort Stewart before a group of witnesses held him down, officials said.
Automated logistics sergeant Coonrius Radford, 28, is believed to have fired his personal handgun before being taken into custody Wednesday, Brigg said. General John Levas, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division at Stewart Hunter Army Airfield.
The victim was not publicly identified, but was said to be a colleague of Radford, located at a base 40 miles southwest of Savannah.
Three of the five injured people have been released from the hospital, but Rubas said Thursday that it was “surprising given the situation and scope they are engaged in.”
The two who remain hospitalized are expected to recover, Lubas said.
Rubas said it is not clear what prompted the shooting.
Radford was the subject of his stud bullying as soon as he joined the army, a former colleague said.
