This story is live and will continue to be updated as new information is made available.
Shooter prohibited from Emory’s campus
Emory University Police Department (EPD) Chief Burt Buchtinec commented on this morning’s shooting at Emory Point in an email to the campus community around 1:17 p.m., explaining that the individuals involved in the altercation are “employed by an Emory-affiliated service company.” The suspect fired at least one gunshot in “a limited-access kitchen area of a leased business,” according to the email. Nobody was injured in the incident.
Buchtinec added that the shooter is now prohibited from returning to Emory’s campus or any University facilities.
“I realize that this morning’s incident may have been upsetting and stressful,” Buchtinec wrote in the email. “Please know Emory has a variety of resources to support you. The Emory Police Department takes pride in serving this community and we will continue our efforts to keep everyone safe and secure.”
University releases information on aggravated assault, confirms shooting
Emory University Communications notified the campus community around 11:56 a.m. that shots were fired at Emory Point earlier this morning, prompting an Emory Emergency Alert around 8:21 a.m.
Emory Police Department (EPD) officers responded to the scene and learned that the shooting arose from a dispute between two co-workers in an unknown Emory Point restaurant. According to the email, the subject — a 60-year-old Black man wearing a blue uniform jacket — got a gun from his car and shot at a coworker in the kitchen but missed. He then brandished the gun at another coworker before fleeing the scene in a 2021 silver Chevrolet Malibu with the tag CXZ7407.
The suspect is currently not in custody. However, the University issued an all clear around 8:45 a.m. after EPD officers confirmed that he left the scene.
University issues all clear after reporting ‘police emergency’ at Emory Point
Emory University alerted members of the community of a “police emergency” on the Atlanta campus at Emory Point this morning around 8:21 a.m. The alert, sent through the University’s emergency notification system, instructed people to avoid the area.
The University issued an all clear around 8:45 a.m. The message instructed community members to contact emergency personnel “as needed.”
Fox 5 Atlanta reported at 8:57 a.m. that the Emory Police Department (EPD) was investigating a shooting in the area. Several EPD cars and officers were present on the scene.
Bon Appétit catering workers evacuated the area, according to Fox 5 Atlanta. Emory Point houses apartments and shops on Clifton Road less than a mile from Emory’s Atlanta campus, with some upperclassmen students living in the complex.
Vice President of University Communications and Marketing Laura Diamond wrote in an email to The Emory Wheel that she did not have any further information on the situation at the time. It is currently unclear if the reports of a shooting are accurate.
The University did not provide community members with further information on the emergency, causing students to speculate about the situation. Users on Fizz, a social media platform where Emory students can share posts anonymously, have expressed confusion over the situation at Emory Point, with one user asking for someone at the complex to describe the scene and if police were present. Fizz posts questioning the emergency at Emory Point have garnered more than 1,000 upvotes as of 11 a.m.
It has been over two years since the last incident of an alleged shooter on campus. In May 2022, students sheltered in place for over two hours after a University social media post incorrectly stated that there was an “active shooter” on the Atlanta campus. The University ultimately deleted the post and Vice President of Public Safety Cheryl Elliot, who was serving as the EPD chief at the time, apologized for the confusion, stating that there was a possible armed subject on campus, not an active shooter.
Update (9/19/2024 at 12:30 p.m.): This article was updated to include new information on the aggravated assault.
Update (9/19/2024 at 1:34 p.m.): This article was updated to include new information from Emory Police Department Chief Burt Buchtinec’s email.
