Another shooting in Atlanta’s affluent Buckhead neighborhood has prompted a Buckhead group to push ahead with plans to secede from the city of Atlanta.
The fatal shooting of a man early Sunday is the latest incident in a violent crime wave in the prestigious community in northwest Atlanta.
Police say the man, age 40-50, was driving a Rolls-Royce on Piedmont Road near Sidney Marcus Boulevard when another vehicle pulled alongside and someone opened fire.
The driver, who was shot multiple times, lost control of the Rolls-Royce which slammed into a tree around 2:30 a.m. Sunday. He was pronounced dead at Grady Memorial Hospital that same day.
According to 11 Alive News, the crime spree has pushed one group to make Buckhead its own city.
The Buckhead Exploratory Committee is described as a “diverse group of individuals exploring the idea of Buckhead Cityhood.”
In a statement, Sam Lenaeus, CEO of Buckhead Exploratory Committee, said making Buckhead its own city is a “top priority”.
But Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said establishing a new city is not the answer to the crime wave.
“A number of issues that we’ve had in the City of Atlanta… come from people traveling from out of state,” she said. “So establishing a city is not going to address that issue.
Bottoms has come under fire for not doing enough to curb the high crime in Atlanta that spiked after the short-lived Covid-19 lockdowns in March.
Out-of-towners traveling to Atlanta from locked down Democratic cities contributed to the rise of violent crime in Atlanta and its surrounding suburbs.
