Marietta residents concerned about crime on busy street

MARIETTA, Ga — A judge ordered two men, who police say started a gun fight in the middle of an apartment complex, held without bond, Wednesday.

One of the shots hit a woman in the back as she escorted three young children from an after school-program.

The woman was in court today as she watched the suspects make their initial appearance.

This is one of three recent shootings Channel 2 Action News covered on Franklin Street. One of those shootings was fatal.

Someone shot and killed 19-year-old Christopher Wilson and injured two others during a party at an apartment complex last Wednesday. Police believe the shots came from a group pf party crashers.

Hours after that, police investigated a shooting where a stray bullet hit a 12-year-old girl attending a birthday party, injuring her.

The two men, Najahwan White and Teodrick Hawthorne were charged with aggravated assault and other crimes. Police said the gang related shooting was partially caught on tape.

Carmen Paz was the only person wounded and said she feels lucky to be alive and even more thankful the three kids she was escorting weren’t hit. She said the bullet went in and out of her back and nearly hit her colon.

Police say they plan to fight back against these attacks and said that one controversial plan they could implement would be to force apartment owners to buy into crime reduction programs. If police note an increase in crime, that would give police additional powers to patrol the complexes looking for suspicious activity, trespassers or code violations.

Some complain that that would be giving police too much power, but Paz told Channel 2’s Ross Cavitt that something needs to be done.

WSBTV