ATLANTA — Atlanta police are investigating more than a dozen shootings within the city over the weekend. Several of those shootings took place out in the open, near businesses where any number of people could have been.
Gunfire rang out in the middle of a busy Atlantic Station intersection Monday afternoon.
Someone found a man dead inside a bathroom at the Azule Restaurant and Lodge early Monday morning.
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Karen Bremer heads up the Georgia Restaurant Association. Channel 2′s Audrey Washington asked Bremer if restaurant owners should consider closing their doors early to protect patrons from possible late-night danger.
“It is certainly a very bad optic for the rest of the nation,” Bremer said. “Most restaurants, at least full-service independent restaurants are open to only until 10 or 11 on the weekends. It’s few and far between that any are open any later than that.”
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In a statement about the uptick in crime Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms stated,
“Atlantans deserve and expect a safe community. As our Administration continues to put considerable resources towards ending this COVID crime wave, the Anti-Violence Advisory Committee will begin work this week to make additional recommendations to help improve public safety throughout our city.”
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Washington also reached out to all of the declared Atlanta mayoral candidates. Atlanta City Council President Felicia Moore was the only one to respond. She issued a statement saying,
“Crime in our city is continuing to escalate and decisive steps need to be taken. I have previously requested APD to share with Council data analyzed from all homicides and gun violence from 2020 to present that will identify potential trends. In identifying these trends, we can deploy targeted critical resources and begin working with neighborhoods across the city, the Council and the Administration to take action in a collaborative manner.”
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