After a nearly eight-hour, chaotic manhunt, authorities captured the man accused of opening fire in a Midtown Atlanta medical building Wednesday and killing a 38-year-old woman and wounding four others. The suspected gunman, 24-year-old Deion Patterson, went inside Northside Medical Midtown just before noon and shot the first victim shortly after, Atlanta Police Deputy Chief Charles Hampton said that the suspect used a handgun in the attack before fleeing on foot and hijacking a vehicle nearby. Read the entire article to know more.
Who Is Deion Patterson’s Wife?
The slain woman was Amy St. Pierre, the Fulton County medical examiner’s office claimed that St. Pierre worked for the Atlanta-based Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. The ages of the women who were wounded in the shooting range from 25 to 71. They were sent to a nearby Atlanta hospital, with three of them arriving in critical condition. The mass shooting, which is the latest in a relentless series of gun violence across America sent Atlanta’s bustling Midtown community into shock as authorities asked residents and patrons visiting the area to shelter in place while police searched for the gunman. It was a traumatic day for the city altogether.
Image Credit: Atlanta Police Department (Twitter)Image Credit: Atlanta Police Department (Twitter)Image Credit: Atlanta Police Department (Twitter)Image Credit: Atlanta Police Department (Twitter)Image Credit: Atlanta Police Department (Twitter)Image Credit: Atlanta Police Department (Twitter)
On Wednesday night, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said that this was a horrible act of gun violence, but an equally horrifying act. He added that they will take more action for the rights of our citizens and provide them with a safe and secure life ahead. In a news conference announcing the arrest, Hampton said that the suspect spent about two minutes in the medical center before he left on foot and went to a nearby Shell station. There, the gunman found and took an unattended pickup truck. He added that roughly 20 minutes later, cameras picked up the vehicle’s tag number, and police were alerted the suspect was in Cobb County. He added that technology played a huge role, but unfortunately, technology doesn’t do any good without people who are determined to capture an individual that would do something like this. Including the shooting at the Atlanta medical facility, there have been at least 191 mass shootings in the United States this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which like PKB, defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more people are shot, including the shooter.
Atlanta Police Department Statement on Deion Patterson
Update as of 1:30p – There have been no additional shots fired since the initial incident unfolded. We are currently aware of 4 shooting victims related to this situation. (1/3)
— Atlanta Police Department (@Atlanta_Police) May 3, 2023
Three have been transported to the hospital for treatment and a fourth has been pronounced deceased on scene. Officers are actively searching for the suspect and any other victims. (2/3)
— Atlanta Police Department (@Atlanta_Police) May 3, 2023
Based on our preliminary investigation, these are photos believed to be of the active shooter. Anyone with any information on this person’s whereabouts is asked to call 911. The suspect is believed to be armed and dangerous and should not be approached. (3/3)
— Atlanta Police Department (@Atlanta_Police) May 3, 2023
As of 3:06pm – The shelter-in-place order has been lifted in Midtown Atlanta.
— Atlanta Police Department (@Atlanta_Police) May 3, 2023
MEDIA: Sound will be provided momentarily. Please go to the staging area at 12th and W. Peachtree St.
— Atlanta Police Department (@Atlanta_Police) May 3, 2023
The residents told us that the suspect was captured inside a gated condominium complex in Cobb County, a little more than 10 miles north of where the shooting unfolded. Christy Colwell, a Waterford Place resident said that dogs barking within the complex caused her concern that the suspect could be hiding in the pool area, which includes a gazebo. She informed a police officer who was at the facility responding to a noise call. A 911 call operator alerted officers to a call that they believed had the potential to be the suspect. A high-level source with the Atlanta Police Department told PKB News that, according to Patterson’s mother, the suspect was seeking a new treatment after being dissatisfied with the care he was receiving from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Three injured women were in critical condition and underwent emergency surgery, one was stable when they arrived at Grady Memorial Hospital.