Despite violent weekend, Atlanta touts drop in homicides
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Mayor Andre Dickens speaks during Monday's news conference about the weekend shootings. Photo: Kristal Dixon/Axios
Despite Atlanta's weekend of a dozen shootings that left two people dead and more than two dozen injured, officials say the city's homicide rate is moving in the right direction.
Driving the news: Chief Darin Schierbaum and Mayor Andre Dickens addressed the weekend shootings during a news conference Monday at Atlanta Police Department's public safety headquarters.
- "We haven't had a weekend like this in a long time, maybe two years or more," Dickens said, adding the summer months are often the most challenging when it comes to gun violence in Atlanta communities.
The latest: Schierbaum said detectives are investigating 12 shootings that injured 29 people since Friday.
- The most recent shooting happened early Monday in the 300 block of Edgewood Avenue SE in the Sweet Auburn neighborhood.
- Police were dispatched around 1:30am to the scene and found a man shot to death.
- 10 other people – seven men and three women – were also shot at or near the crime scene.
What they're saying: "[The shootings] played out throughout various parts of the city, but none is connected [to] the other — other than individuals had guns and they were angry," Schierbaum said Monday.
- Among the reasons for the shootings were disputes over cars getting booted, a nephew allegedly shooting and killing his uncle and domestic disputes, the chief said.
- Two teens were also shot while they were at a party at a home rented on Airbnb, the chief said.
Context: While the spike in shootings over the weekend is concerning, Dickens said Atlanta's homicides are down for the first half of this year compared to the same time in 2024.
- The city has recorded 57 homicides this year, compared to 76 in 2024, the chief said.
The big picture: Schierbaum and Dickens said activities for children, teens and young adults have played a role in keeping violent crime down, and the city's At-Promise Centers and Police Athletic League programs keep youth off the street.
- Dickens also said the mayor's Office of Violence Reduction has been solving disputes, even those that have been ongoing for decades.
- The office has representatives embedded in neighborhoods to help address issues before they escalate.
The bottom line: "These things are difficult to prevent, but we try to make sure that the whole society understands that guns are not the answer and that we should use conflict resolution and de-escalation tactics," Dickens said.