Georgia police have identified the gunman who opened fire near the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention campus and Emory University on Friday, killing a police officer and striking the health agency’s buildings in a rapid volley of fire.
The suspected gunman, who is now dead, has been identified as 30-year-old Patrick Joseph White, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation revealed Saturday. A DeKalb County police officer was killed in the shooting.
Police say the gunman also fired several rounds at the CDC buildings from a CVS across the street. Several windows in the CDC building were shown with bullet holes in the aftermath.
No civilians were hurt, officials confirmed.
Here’s what we know about the suspected gunman and how Friday’s shooting unfolded:
Police identify the suspected shooter
Police identified White as the shooter on Saturday morning. The 30-year-old is from Kennesaw, Georgia, a town about 30 miles from the CDC campus in Atlanta.
The suspected gunman was found dead on the second floor of the CVS, though officials don’t know “whether that was from officers or if it was self-inflicted,” Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said Friday.
What was the gunman’s motive?
Officials have yet to reveal White’s motive, but he may have targeted the CDC because he believed he had an illness caused by the Covid-19 vaccine, a law enforcement official told CNN.
“He is a known person that may have some interests in certain things that I can’t reiterate right now with any confidence until the investigation is fully conducted,” Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said of the suspected gunman Friday.
Officer killed in the line of duty
DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose was killed in the shooting after working in the role for nearly a year. He was a 33-year-old married father of two children, with a third on the way.
Rose was fatally shot after the gunman turned his aim away from the CDC campus and toward the officer, a law enforcement official told CNN. Rose later died at Emory University Hospital.
“Officer Rose served DeKalb County with courage, integrity, and unwavering dedication,” the DeKalb County Police Department said in a tribute.
“Even in the face of danger was he diligent in his duty to protect our community.”
Several CDC buildings hit by gunfire
Police say the gunman opened fire from inside a CVS across the street from the CDC campus on Friday afternoon. No civilians were injured.
The gunman struck at least four buildings on the health agency’s campus, CDC Director Susan Monarez said. CDC employees told CNN that bullets broke through the windows and flew past cubicles.
“It’s a miracle no one was killed here,” one employee said.
There were also 92 children in a daycare on the CDC campus during the shooting. A mother whose child was at the daycare told CBS News, “I’m also a bit angry that at a year and a half, he would have to experience something like this.”
“It’s anxiety-inducing, it’s very scary,” she added.
Employees at a nearby deli, General Muir’s, also reported hearing gunshots, according to the Associated Press. Brandy Giraldo, the deli’s chief operating officer, said it sounded like “fireworks going off, one right after the other.”
The gunfire sent the nearby Emory University campus into lockdown, along with the CDC, Emory University Hospital and other nearby schools and daycares.
“Active shooter on Emory Atlanta Campus at Emory Point CVS. RUN, HIDE, FIGHT,” campus officials wrote in a statement. “Avoid the area. Continue shelter in place. Police on scene.”
What have officials said about the shooting?
DeKalb County CEO Lorraine Cochran-Johnson told reporters Friday was a “very dark day” for the community and for Rose’s family.
“This evening there is a wife without a husband,” Cochran-Johnson said of Rose. “There are three children, one unborn, without a father.”
Several Georgia lawmakers, including Senator Raphael Warnock and Representative Mike Collins, acknowledged the shooting and sent prayers to those impacted. FBI Director Kash Patel also commented on the shooting.
“Pray for the family, friends, and colleagues of this hero who acted quickly to defend others and made the ultimate sacrifice,” Patel wrote on X. “The FBI will offer them our full support.”
