ACWORTH, Ga. — A woman who was stabbed multiple times outside a Chick-fil-A in Cherokee County is alive today because two off-duty police officers happened to be in the right place at the right time, according to Acworth police.
The violent attack unfolded Thursday afternoon at the Chick-fil-A on Highway 92 near Interstate 75, just outside Acworth.
Officer Makayla Grimes told Channel 2 Cobb County Bureau Chief Michele Newell that she and another off-duty officer were waiting in line to order food when the scene suddenly turned chaotic.
“It goes from God’s chicken to a battlefield in an instant. It can happen anywhere,” Grimes said.
According to investigators, a mother and daughter were traveling from Wisconsin when they began arguing while driving on the interstate. Authorities say the dispute escalated, prompting them to pull into the Chick-fil-A parking lot.
That’s when Grimes heard a desperate call for help.
“We heard somebody yell behind us, ‘Help,’” Grimes said. “We see a woman completely covered from head to toe in blood. She tells us that her daughter had stabbed her.”
Grimes said it was difficult to determine where the victim had been wounded because of the amount of blood.
“I’m asking her where she’s cut and she is saying everywhere. It’s just a ton of blood, so it’s hard to see exactly where she is bleeding from,” she said.
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As customers panicked, Chick-fil-A employees rushed to help by providing napkins. But officers quickly realized they needed something more effective to stop the bleeding.
Grimes said the other off-duty officer, identified as Officer LaFave, grabbed a tourniquet from his duty belt and began emergency medical treatment.
“This was used to apply to both of her arms. That stopped the bleeding,” Grimes explained while demonstrating the device.
Police say the victim had been stabbed approximately 10 times.
Grimes believes the victim might not have survived had officers not been there.
“She would’ve died. I think she would’ve died for sure. God’s timing for sure,” she said.
The officer said moments like these are exactly why she chose a career in law enforcement.
“I’m happy we were there that day to be able to help,” Grimes said.
Investigators identified the suspect as 21-year-old Shyanniah Johnson. Deputies say she stabbed her 39-year-old mother during the confrontation.
After the attack, authorities tracked Johnson to Whitfield County, where she was arrested.
Officials say the mother has already been released from the hospital and is recovering.
Deputies also said two toddlers who were in the vehicle during the incident were turned over to the Georgia Division of Family & Children Services.