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One year since mass shooting shook Midtown Atlanta

One woman was killed and four others were injured when a 24-year-old suspect opened fire inside a Midtown medical clinic on May 3, 2023.

ATLANTA — Friday marks one year since a shooting that shook Midtown Atlanta, leaving one woman dead and four others injured.

A gunman opened fire inside a clinic at Northside Medical Midtown on May 3, 2023, sparking panic around the busy area and a daylong manhunt that extended into Cobb County. 

RELATED: 'My memories are so vivid' | Midtown Atlanta mass shooting survivor reflects 1 year later

Amy Wald St. Pierre, 38, died in the shooting. One of the women injured, Alesha Hollinger, came forward this week and spoke to 11Alive's Kaitlyn Ross about her reflections and the healing process she has gone through since surviving being shot in the face.

"You don't think that you're going to be the victim of a mass shooting," she said. "That is surreal. Even to this day, there are mornings when I wake up and think, 'Did this really happen?'"

She added that, "For me and my family, it's a story of gratitude and joy because our story ended up being a happy one; but the other side of that is the sadness and remorse that I feel for the other families.

Credit: 11Alive
Alesha Hollinger
Credit: Courtesy / Family Photo
Amy Wald St. Pierre

The alleged gunman, 24-year-old Deion Patterson, was indicted last year after the shooting on 17 charges, among them murder and felony murder.

What happened on May 3, 2023

APD responded to a call at Northside Medical Midtown around noon -- an urgent care and family medicine facility -- where they learned Patterson was with his mother. She later told the Associated Press that her son was having a mental break and was seeking a prescription for a drug called Ativan. 

Police said Patterson was on the 11th floor in the waiting room when he opened fire. He was only in the building for two minutes, according to police.

A chaotic scene followed in the area of West Peachtree Street in Midtown

Not long after the shooting, police said Patterson went to a Shell gas station by 14th Street NW and Williams Street NW near the Whole Foods Market. At the gas station, Patterson hopped into a white pick-up truck that was running and drove off, according to investigators.

A Georgia Department of Transportation camera spotted Patterson on a traffic camera at 12:30 p.m. GDOT's camera showed Patterson was in the area of Windy Ridge Parkway and Heritage Court, not far from Truist Park.  

Cobb County Police Department investigators joined the search as they were tipped off about Patterson being within the area– two hours after the last visual confirmation. 

They received many calls about him potentially being in the area but did not receive any witness accounts. The pick-up truck police said Patterson stole from the Midtown gas station was found in a parking deck near The Battery and Truist Park.

In collaboration with nearly a dozen agencies, Cobb County Police narrowed down the search to a residential area.

Patterson was taken into custody nearly 8 hours after the incident began, at 8 p.m. the night of May 3, on Killarney Drive in the Waterford Place Condos.

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