Guard Held in Teen's Shooting

The domestic partner of a Clayton County security guard who allegedly shot a teen in the head because she thought the boy had stolen her girlfriend's car said Thursday that the woman meant no harm to the victim.

Kathryn Smith Kathryn Smith

"My heart goes out to the family and I'm really sorry," said Chanda Burch. "I hope he makes it. I really do."

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Courtney Wright, 16, was flown by helicopter to Atlanta Medical Center after the 7 p.m. dispute Wednesday outside an Advance Auto Parts store in Riverdale. He remained Thursday in critical condition and was said to be on life support.

Kathryn Smith, 30, was arrested in connection with the incident and is facing several charges, including aggravated assault and carrying a weapon without a license. The charges could be upgraded, however, if the boy takes a turn for the worse.

A Clayton magistrate judge set bond Thursday at $15,000, according to a report in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She was being held in the Clayton County jail.

The shooting outraged the teen's relatives, who gathered at the scene immediately after the shooting. They said the shooting was not justified.

"It does not justify him being shot for a car,' said Livia Tolden, the boy's aunt.

Police said Smith, who was off-duty, was on her way to work at Wayfields Foods at Flat Shoals and Riverdale roads and had just gotten off the bus when she saw a car that she thought had been stolen from Burch.

The woman confronted Wright, who was in the vehicle with another passenger, and an argument ensued.

"The female security guard pulled her duty weapon and discharged it one time into the cab of the vehicle, striking the driver once to the head," said police Capt. Jeff Turner.

The woman allegedly told police that she fired the .38 revolver because the teen tried to run her over. Police said the car did belong to Smith's friend and had been reported stolen from East Point on Monday.

Turner told the AJC that the teen, if he survives, faces charges of possession of a stolen vehicle in connection with the theft of the 2001 Pontiac Grand Am. He told the newspaper that security guards do not have police powers.

"What they should do is contact law enforcement personnel," he said. "In cases like this they should give a good detailed description and call us and let us handle it because that is what we are trained to do. Hopefully, if they do that we can have better outcomes."

Burch said her partner has expressed remorse about the incident, saying she was not aiming at the boy when the shooting occurred.

Channel 2 Action News reporters Deidra Dukes and Tracy Martinez contributed to this report.