As Joseph "JP" Aretreas Brown fell dead early Wednesday morning in DeKalb County, witnesses reported hearing dozens of gunshots.

One caller said they heard 10 shots and saw people running near Flat Shoals Road, according to a police report released Thursday. Another reported 40 to 50 shots and the sounds of people screaming, and another said a man was shot in the head.

Police found Brown, 39, face down in a pool of blood on the sidewalk behind Gulf American Inn, which is near Taco Bell and I-285, at about 12:30 a.m.

A Buick LeSabre near the body had a bullet hole in the glass.

DeKalb County police haven’t released any information on a possible motive or suspect.

Like DeKalb County News Now on Facebook | Follow on Twitter and Instagram

In other news:

Friends say Gerald Tisdale was on his way to see his children when someone opened fire on him driving down Highway 78.

About the Author

Keep Reading

People line up outside the federal building in Atlanta that houses an immigration court and ICE office. Several cases in the court are at the center of a disciplinary proceeding against Norcross immigration lawyer Christopher Taylor. (Ben Hendren/AJC 2025)

Credit: Ben Hendren

Featured

Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

Credit: NYT