Atlanta mass shooting – latest: Midtown attack victim named as suspect charged with murder after manhunt
Amy St Pierre was killed when suspected gunman Deion Patterson opened fire at Midtown Atlanta’s Northside Hospital
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The woman killed in the mass shooting at an Atlanta medical centre has now been identified as a 38-year-old CDC worker.
Amy St. Pierre was killed on Wednesday when suspected gunman Deion Patterson opened fire at Midtown Atlanta’s Northside Hospital.
The shooting unfolded when Mr Patterson, who used to be in the US Coast Guard, was attending an appointment with his mother. He allegedly pulled out a handgun and opened fire in the waiting room, shooting five women.
St Pierre died while the four other victims – aged 25 to 71 – are fighting for their lives in hospital.
Mr Patterson, 24, fled the scene by carjacking a vehicle close to the hospital, police said.
A huge manhunt ensued before he was tracked down to Cobb County, just northwest of Atlanta, where he was arrested
A local resident told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the suspect was found hiding near a condo complex’s pool after dogs began barking at him.
Mr Patterson’s mother, Minyone Patterson, said her son had “some mental instability going on” from medication he received from the Veterans Affairs health system that he began taking on Friday.
Atlanta gunman found hiding near pool after barking dogs alerted neighbours, report says
Deion Patterson: Everything we know about the at-large Atlanta mass shooting suspect
Everything we know about the Atlanta mass shooting that left one dead, three others hospitalised
Deion Patterson was angry at ‘messed up’ meds before killing one and injuring three others, says mother
Northside Hospital doctor helped victims immediately after Atlanta mass shooting
A doctor working at Northside Hospital recalls hiding during the mass shooting in the facility’s waiting room before he emerged and began to assist with the wounded.
Scott Kleber, 62, who was just outside the waiting room during the shooting, said he waited for a few minutes after the shooting before poking his head out to survey the damage. He recalled the grisly scene to the Washington Post.
“We hunkered down for a few minutes, and I cracked open my door. I hear a cry for help from the waiting room. You can’t let someone who needs help not get help,” Dr Kleber said. “I open the door carefully and gently and I did not see a shooter, but I saw three bodies — three injured. One [had] a gunshot wound to the head. That was near the front desk. She was motionless, and it was pretty clear she succumbed to her gunshot wound. There was a lot of blood from her head.”
He recalled finding a staff member who worked the front desk hiding in a back room with a bullet wound to her abdomen.
“She is breathing and conscious with a bullet wound from her front abdomen through her back, a through-and-through gunshot wound,” he said. “And there is another employee, who appears to have a graze wound, offering comfort to her co-worker.”
Dr Kleber said he reassured the injured woman.
“I listened to her lungs. I told her, ‘EMS is coming. Hold tight. People are going to take care of you.’”
Despite his actions, he insisted that he “is not a hero.”
Atlanta shooting suspect’s mother pleads with public not to disregard the mentally ill
Minyone Patterson, the mother of Atlanta mass shooting suspect Deion Patterson, said her son began shooting after he had a mental health break brought on by issues with his medication. She has asked the public not to brush aside the troubles faced by individuals facing severe mental illness.
“Don’t disregard them,” she told CNN affiliate WANF. “I’m trying to advocate for my son. Just be careful.”
Georgia shooting: Gunman at large after opening fire inside McDonald’s causing ‘multiple’ casualties, reports say
Another shooting at a public place has taken place in Georgia.
A gunman is at large after opening fire inside a Georgia McDonald’s causing “multiple” casualties, reports say.
Police are investigating the incident which took place in Moultrie, Georgia, around three hours south of Atlanta, and there are multiple crime scenes, according to The Moultrie Observer.
Moultrie police and Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents are probing fatal incidents at Moultrie’s McDonald’s restaurant and a residence on Sixth Street Southwest, reported the newspaper.
READ MORE:
Multiple people dead after gunman opens fire at McDonald’s and homes in Moultrie
Shooter kills his mother, grandmother and a McDonald’s worker in rural town south of Atlanta
Family of Amy St Pierre, CDC worker killed in Atlanta mass shooting, issues statement
Ms St Pierre’s family offered the following statement to The Independent.
“Our beloved Amy was brilliant, kind, big-hearted and simply the ‘best of the best’. An Emory honors graduate and Georgia State MBA, Amy traveled the world with curiosity and courage. She was driven by compassion, both in her work in the field of maternal mortality, and in her everyday life. Amy was selfless always, she wanted more for others but never for herself. Generous supporter of worthy causes, she was the social conscience of our family.”
“Loving wife and mother of two, middle sister to two brothers, and cherished daughter, she was truly our pride and joy. Amy’s friends are the best reflection of the person she was. Their outpouring of tears, love and support are beyond measure.”
“She will be missed but never, ever forgotten.”
They have asked for privacy and said they will not be making further comment.
Who is Deion Patterson?
Deion Patterson is accused of killing one victim and wounding four others in a mass shooting at a medical facility in Atlanta, Georgia.
The 24-year-old was previously in the US Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard said Mr Patterson “entered the Coast Guard in July 2018 and last served as an Electrician’s Mate Second Class. He was discharged from active duty in January 2023.”
“Our deepest sympathies are with the victims and their families,” the statement said.
Mr Patterson had a previous arrest for marijuana posession in Henry County, 11Alive reports.
The Daily Beast managed to reach Mr Patterson’s mother, who told them the VA had given him medicine that affected his judgement.
“The damn VA gave him some messed up medication. And all he wanted was an Ativan,” his mother, Minyone Patterson, told The Daily Beast.
