Police say people need to ‘make better choices’ following weekend of violent crime

ATLANTA — Following another violent and deadly weekend in Atlanta, police are reminding people that you can’t solve every problem with a gun.

In one incident, multiple shots were fired outside the Trap Museum in northwest Atlanta early Sunday morning.

Four people were wounded and it was all captured on an Uber driver’s dashboard camera.

In another incident from over the weekend, police responded to reports of a person shot on Sidney Marcus Boulevard around 1:30 a.m. Police found a passenger with a gunshot wound. He was taken to the hospital, where he died.

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Channel 2′s Dave Huddleston spoke with a psychologist who said it does appear crime is on the rise and COVID-19 could be one of the reasons.

In all, 19 people were shot in the Atlanta city limits this weekend. At least 5 died.

Huddleston spent the day Monday texting and emailing with Atlanta police who said they are working all of the cases.

The department sent Huddleston a statement saying:

“The Atlanta police department will continue working to reduce violent crime, but some of these incidents require individuals to make better choices. Picking up a gun to solve disagreements is not just a police issue. These incidents involve people making poor choices when resolving conflict and it’s practically impossible to police that in real time. We need individuals to make better choices.”

Rebecca Johnson Osei is a clinical psychologist who’s worked in prisons with the criminally insane.

“I think it’s very scary for people,” she said about the rising crime.

She said a lack of control over your life this past year could be one factor causing people to lash out.

“We have a tendency to react immediately, and those reactions are often not the healthiest things,” Osei said.

Osei said taking a breath and waiting a second before you react could keep you from spending the rest of your life in prison.

It’s something that can work for all of us. Huddleston attempted to contact some of the victims who were shot, but they did not return his calls.

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Cox Media Group