Necole Pruitt said she was just getting her Saturday started when she heard gunshots at her northwest Atlanta apartment complex.
Two boys, ages 10 and 15, were injured at the Fairburn & Gordon II complex, located at 213 Fairburn Road, shortly before 1 p.m., Atlanta police spokesperson John Predmore said. They were said to be stable after being taken to a hospital.
“I heard three loud gunshots. Pow! Pow! Pow! And then I heard the screaming,” Pruitt said. “I heard the mom say, ‘Somebody shot my baby.”
Pruitt, 50, who has lived at the complex in the Adamsville neighborhood for six years, said crime has always been the norm. Gunshots have become background noise.
She said there were a few children playing in the parking lot before the gunfire rang out. Pruitt described it as a common sight, especially during the summer when kids aren’t in school.
When she heard the gunfire, she said she immediately called 911.
“Nobody’s kid should be getting shot,” Pruitt said. “They should be either playing, eating popsicles, going to the pool, something other than being victims of gunfire.”
Authorities said a preliminary investigation indicates the shooting was the result of an escalating argument over a relationship.
No other details were released.
Credit: Ben Hendren
Credit: Ben Hendren
About an hour after the shooting, officers were still searching the area and placing evidence markers near the back of the apartment complex. A police K-9 was also at the scene.
Pruitt said she did not hear a vehicle drive off or see anyone run away after the incident. Police have not released information about a suspected gunman.
The apartment community is among 272 of the metro area’s persistently dangerous complexes, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s “Dangerous Dwellings” investigation that looked into serious crimes, lax maintenance and other hazards in Atlanta neighborhoods.
From 2017 through May 2023, police had reported 38 crimes there — including 10 aggravated assaults and eight robberies.
About five minutes from Saturday’s scene, a 12-year-old boy was fatally shot June 12 at the Retreat at Greenbriar apartments in the 3200 block of Cushman Circle in Atlanta, police said. Ja’Nylen Amir Greggs died after being shot in the torso.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens previously said Greggs had been playing outside when he was shot.
“He was caught in the crossfire of an incident that was happening nearby while he was playing basketball,” Dickens said. “We never want that to happen. We never want any of our young people to feel afraid to go anywhere — a park, a recreation center, outside.”
Saturday’s victims were the latest in a rash of shootings involving youths in the metro Atlanta area.
Early Thursday, a teenager was shot in the 2300 block of Briar Knoll Road in DeKalb County, police said.
Just a few hours earlier, on Wednesday evening, officials stated that a 14-year-old was shot at a skating rink on Amish Court in Clayton County. A suspect, who was not publicly identified, was arrested.
On June 15, Smyrna police said a 6-year-old was shot when gunfire erupted between two vehicles in the area of Campbell and Spring roads. Two men were charged.
On June 13, a man was arrested after killing his estranged wife and his 7-year-old niece at a DeKalb apartment complex, authorities said. The victims were identified as Tomika Pullins, 29, and Dior Scott.
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