BUCKHEAD, Ga. — Atlanta Police are investigating after a shooting at the 1200 block of Peachtree Battle Avenue that left a man dead early Thursday morning. He was found shot on the sidewalk outside of a home on that busy road.
Heather Baker said her 9-year-old daughter, Imogen, spotted the man while they were driving to school. The Fulton County Medical Examiner identified the man on Friday morning as 57-year-old Christopher Eberhart,.
“She was sitting on the side of the road closest to the sidewalk," Heather recalled. "She said, 'Mommy, a man on the ground. There’s blood and I think he was shot.' I immediately turned into the nearest driveway. I couldn’t believe it because it was a .5 second moment where she saw it and she named it.”
Atlanta Police said a man in his mid-40s to early 50s was found shot on the sidewalk in front of a home in the West Peachtree Battle neighborhood.
Police said that when officers arrived before 8 a.m., he was not breathing.
“The scene right now is outside the residence, near the city street. On a sidewalk. At this time there's no vehicle connection," APD Homicide Commander Germain Dearlove said.
Heather, who is a trauma therapist, said droves of cars passed by during rush hour, but no one seemed to stop.
“Apart from the kind of shock and horror of encountering someone who has been mortally wounded and just the tragedy of gun violence in a neighborhood that seems like it would be safe, the real tragedy for me was how many cars were just driving by and then no one stopped," Heather said. "That was a little bit really disorienting and tragic to me."
Heather adds that they turned around when Imogen spotted the man, put their hazard lights on, and called 911.
“I went near enough to him to determine he did not appear to be breathing," she said. "It is clear he was unresponsive and it appeared to be three gunshots on the upper left side of his chest."
Homicide investigators recovered at least six pieces of evidence on the scene.
As of Friday morning, Atlanta Police have not a suspect or a motive. They're asking anyone with information, or available video, to reach out to CrimeStoppers.