3rd teen arrested in deadly Gwinnett shooting

Two DeKalb County high school athletes, Joshua Donnell Cook and Terrance Elisha Thornton, both 17 and from Stone Mountain, were already in the county jail on armed robbery and murder charges.

Thornton, a Chamblee Charter High School varsity baseball player, was arrested Sunday. He drove the getaway car, Pihera said. Cook, a standout football player at Arabia Mountain High School, was arrested Monday afternoon. Police have not specified his role in the shooting.

Thornton and Cook appeared in court together Tuesday.

Bryant had his first appearance Wednesday afternoon.

“This is a deeply disturbing case involving four young men who were at the beginning of their adult lives,” Pihera said. “There is no peaceful resolution to the conclusion of this criminal investigation.”

According to police, officers responded to the 4600 block of Grove Lake Street about 5:50 p.m. Saturday after witnesses reported a group of teenagers fighting in the parking lot of the neighborhood’s swim and tennis area.

When police got to the scene near Loganville, they found Madison suffering from a gunshot wound. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died.

Friend Isiah Coppin told Channel 2 he was standing close enough to see Madison get shot in the chest. He said he, Madison and another man were selling marijuana to someone they didn’t know and a fight broke out.

Bryant, Cook and Thornton are in the Gwinnett jail with no bond. Bryant also had an outstanding warrant through the Atlanta Police Department, Pihera said. Details about that warrant were not immediately available.

“On one side, you have a family grieving the loss of a 19-year old,” Pihera said. “And, at the other end are three families trying to understand how their teen could be involved in such a crime. A young person lost his life while the other three are facing a lifetime of imprisonment for one very serious criminal act.”