Atlanta park shooting raises concerns over continued gun violence
Reaction to mass shooting at Atlanta park
The deadly shooting happened Sunday during a softball game at Rosa Burney Park. Two people were killed, a 6-year-old girl remains in critical, and three others are reportedly stable from their injuries.
ATLANTA - A shooting of six people at a popular Atlanta park that left two dead and a child in critical condition is raising concerns over continued gun violence unfolding in the city.
Police have been actively working the double homicide, which they say happened when an argument over a softball game got out of hand.
"Our mentality is one of carrying a gun, waiting for something to happen, as opposed to making sure we teach people to value life," Fulton County Commissioner Khadijah Abdul-Rahman remarked.
Police have released an image of a person of interest, who appears to be carrying a gun, which investigators have said was taken at the park around the time of the shooting.
(Atlanta Police Department)
Investigators, like Commissioner Abdul Rahman, believe the community needs to start talking.
"If you see something, you need to say something. That baby in the hospital fighting for her life. We need individuals to come forward. You are either part of the problem or part of the solution," the commissioner exclaimed.
"This is a national health issue, gun violence in our community," the commissioner said in closing.
Families mourn, pray after deadly shooting at Rosa Burney Park
April Sparks (Family photo)
April Sparks was a 33-year-old mother of three. She was with her children watching a softball game at the nearly 14-acre park off Windsor Street when things turned heated and gunfire erupted.
"Me, being a mom, I never thought it would be one of my children," said Anita Glass, April Spark’s mother.
Glass said her granddaughter witnessed the whole thing.
"All my baby was doing was at that park enjoying a softball game with her 12-year-old daughter," the mother said with regret.
Authorities said 31-year-old Rashad Rogers, a father of four, died at Grady Memorial Hospital after the shooting.
2 killed, 4 wounded during Atlanta park shooting
Six people were shot and two were killed after someone opened fire during a softball game at Rosa Burney Park in southwest Atlanta on Sunday night. Among the victims were April Sparks, a mother of three, and a 6-year-old girl named Serenity. That young girl should have started Kindergarten this week, but instead, underwent a marathon surgery to repair the damage from nine bullet wounds.
A 6-year-old-girl named Serenity still is battling for her life at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston on Tuesday. The young girl underwent a marathon surgery to try to repair the damage caused by nine bullet wounds.
Serenity, whose name literally means peace, calm, and untroubled, would have started kindergarten this year. Instead, she remains in critical condition with her family close by.
Three others are also recovering from various injuries. All are said to be in stable condition.
Investigations of deadly Atlanta park shooting continues
The sun had just begun to appear to dip closer to the horizon and the breeze began to pick up a bit. It was looking like a nice end to the weekend. Nearby residents of the Mechanicsville neighborhood had gathered to watch a game at the ball field at Rosa Burney Park, located near the intersection of Whitehall Terrace SW and Crumbley Street SW.
Mass shooting during ball game at SW Atlanta park
One man is dead, four adults are injured, and a 6-year-old child is fighting to stay alive after an argument during a ball game at an Atlanta park ended in a mass shooting.
The field, which is adjacent to Dunbar Elementary School, was crowded with spectators and players, investigators said. Shortly before 7 p.m., gunfire would erupt amid that crowd.
"There was some type of baseball, softball game ongoing. There was an argument that ensued and then, next thing you know, there was an exchange of gunfire," APD Deputy Chief Charles Hampton Jr. said.
When the shooting was over and officers arrived, six people were injured. Two would later die and a 6-year-old girl would bravely cling to life after a marathon surgery.
Investigators know someone in the crowd saw what happened, perhaps even recorded it.
Person of interest identified in deadly shooting at Burney Park
These are surveillance photos taken from a deadly shooting Sunday on Windsor Street in southwest Atlanta. Six people were shot when someone opened fire during a softball game.
After combing through nearby security camera images, police released the image of a young man appearing to carry a gun as he ran from the area. Investigators are calling him a person of interest in the case. They hope someone can identify him.
Police still have not released what sparked the shooting or a time line. Investigators have said they believe more than one person opened fire.
Anyone who recognizes the young man or has any information about the deadly shooting is asked to call the Atlanta Police Department’s Homicide Unit at 404-546-4235 or submit a tip anonymously to the Crime Stoppers Atlanta tip line at 404-577-TIPS (8477).
Interim police chief pledges action after Atlanta park shootings
Sunday’s shooting at Rosa L. Burney Park comes just days after Interim Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum and other city leaders met with residents living around another city park, just seven miles to the west, where a separate deadly shooting happened.
Mayor Dickens works to reduce crime
Mayor Dickens says he knows crime is high in Atlanta, but he believes there is too little attention on the progress that has been made.
The basketball courts at Wilson Mill Park off Fairbun Road was the site of a deadly shooting on the evening of August 2. Residents around 9:45 p.m. called 911 after hearing multiple gunshots. When officers arrived, they found a man shot several times. Emergency workers tried to save him, but the man died at the scene.
The shooter remains at large.
Atlanta City Council member Andrea Boone, who lives down the street from the park, joined the police chief the next day to talk to residents.
"There was a shooting July 24th, and now August 2nd, which was a homicide, which means things are beginning to escalate in the city of Atlanta, right here at Wilson Mill Park," she said.
Off-duty police officers begin patrolling Atlanta parks
The city of Atlanta has a new plan to protect children and families who use city parks. It will pay for off-duty sworn police officers to patrol them. The hiring is going on right now. A dedicate patrol began Friday at Grant Park.
The two city leaders were candid about the increase in violence. The interim chief did pledge he would be working with Atlanta Parks and Recreation Director Justin Cutler about strategies to make the city’s parks a safer place.
The Atlanta City Council earlier this year approved a plan to hire off-duty officers specifically for city park security. Hiring for those positions began back in June. That measure was put in place in response to a deadly shooting at the Anderson Park pool and the brutal deadly attack of Katherine Janness at Piedmont Park last summer.