APD offers $15K reward for info in teen's fatal shooting at Piedmont Park
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Mayor Andre Dickens speaking during Monday's news conference at Atlanta Police Department headquarters. (Screenshot: YouTube/Atlanta Police Department)
The city of Atlanta is offering a $15,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest in the fatal shooting of a teenager Saturday night at Piedmont Park.
The latest: Atlanta police are reviewing license plate readers, cameras and cellphone videos to identify suspects in the shooting that killed 16-year-old Tianah Robinson and injured 15-year-old Italia Wilson, said assistant chief Carven Tyus.
- Mayor Andre Dickens said at a news conference Monday that Robinson, who lived in Riverdale and attended North Clayton High School, was in Atlanta "just to have fun for the weekend."
- A GoFundMe account has been created to help Robinson's family.
Catch up quick: Atlanta police Maj. Peter Malecki said the shooting was reported around 9pm Saturday. Robinson died from her injuries. Wilson, who lives in Peachtree Corners, was transported to an area hospital.
Zoom in: Atlanta police said the two victims did not know each other, and investigators don't believe they were involved in a dispute before the shooting.
- "We do not believe that they were [the] intended victims," Malecki said. "We think that once gunfire broke out, they were inadvertently struck by several of those rounds of gunfire."
- Detectives believe about four people, who were all coming from different areas of the park, were responsible for the gunshots, Malecki said.
- "We're not even sure at this point if they were shooting at a specific individual, or just began discharging those firearms," he said.
State of play: Atlanta police said there was no evidence that the youths who were at the park Saturday were participating in teen takeovers that have been reported in recent weeks across the metro area.
- "We did see a lot of juveniles at the park, but those kids were not being rowdy or disruptive until that tragic incident happened," Tyus said.
The big picture: The Piedmont Park shooting wasn't the only incident of gun violence reported during the weekend.
- APD said a 3-year-old child died after suffering a gunshot wound to the head early Sunday morning. In a separate case, four teenagers were shot Sunday night in southwest Atlanta.
- "I want to be clear [that this is] about more than just Piedmont Park," Dickens said. "Crime has been down in our city, and we have not had a weekend like this in quite a long time."
- Four years ago, the city recorded 48 homicides as of April 6. As of Monday, that number was 17.
What's next: Dickens said the city will review police response time and staffing and determine if improvements could be made in that area.
How you can help: Submit tips to Crime Stoppers Greater Atlanta by calling 404-577-8477 or visiting its website. You can remain anonymous.