DeKalb County

Mother says fight across street sends stray bullets flying around son

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A mother said bullets ricocheted around her son after a fight across the street turned into a shootout.

DeKalb County police said an argument broke out at a home on Bretton Woods Drive in Lithonia Wednesday night.

The argument led to gunfire and police said some of those involved ran toward a family's home.

Marshetta English said her car was parked in the street and bullets went through her windshield and ricocheted off of her headlight.

"They were using it as a shield. It was like a shootout, so they're using my car as a shield and then they ran behind the house and that's when I went inside of my mom's house."

English said it was a shot that went into the media room of the home that terrified her.

"We have a couple of shots into my mom's house. My son, technically, he was sitting in the middle when all the shots ricocheted around him. It was two shots. It bounced off the wall and then it went into the closet," she said.

English's family said they heard anywhere from six to 12 shots.

Police said an 18-year-old man was shot in the thigh.

English is thankful her son is OK.

"I'm just grateful to have my son," she said.

The family wants the community to know about the shooting and the danger it posed to the child.

"Hopefully we won't have anything like this anymore, because we've been here for over 20 years and it's the first time and it really shocked the neighbors," English said.