Nine days after their little girl was shot dead by armed civilians who had commandeered a street in southwest Atlanta, the parents of Secoriea Turner pleaded for witnesses to come forward.
“If you know something, say something,” said Secoriea’s father, Secoriey Williamson. “Do what’s right. You will not be labeled as a snitch. You’ll be labeled as a hero.”
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Attorney Mawuli Davis, who represents the family, said the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of 8-year-old Secoriea’s killers has been increased to $50,000, thanks to private donors.
On Sunday, Atlanta police released a photo of a new person of interest in connection to Secoriea’s death.
Attorney Jackie Patterson, who represents the unidentified man, told reporters on Monday that his client admits being there but denies any involvement in the shooting.
Secoriea was killed a little after 9:30 p.m. on July 4 after as many as four armed civilians, according to investigators, opened fire on her mother’s SUV in a parking lot off University Avenue.
Patterson said his client claims another armed man, and no one else, shot at the vehicle after he was hit by Turner’s Jeep Cherokee.
MORE: Mourners pray, cops seek answers in 8-year-old's shooting death
Across the street from the shooting, at a Wendy's recently destroyed by fire, protesters were holding a block party for residents. They had been encamped there since June 13, one day after Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by an Atlanta police officer following a struggle during a DUI arrest.
"The police have their job and we as a community have ours," said community activist Derrick Boazman, former Atlanta city councilman. "No longer can we sit back and wait. The reason we can't wait is there is a killer or killers still out there."
Boazman is organizing a door-to-door canvas of nearby neighborhoods on Tuesday searching for information about Secoriea's death.
Davis also vowed to find out why the armed civilians were allowed to take control of a major city street, erecting concrete barriers in the middle of University Avenue and deciding who would be allowed to pass. The protesters at Wendy's said they were not affiliated with, and did not know, the people blocking the road.
"We are investigating why that was allowed, what private and public entities, allowed that to take place," Davis said. "It is concerning and alarming and as much as people don't want to talk about race, we are certain that in other parts of this city, that would've been allowed to be maintained. It just wouldn't have."
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said she had been informed of the blockade at least 45 minutes before learning of Secoriea’s death. Asked why the road wasn’t cleared, interim Atlanta Police Department Chief Rodney Bryant blamed a busy night.
During a meeting last week with the editorial board of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the mayor said that police had planned to shut down the protests weeks ago. But Bottoms said she agreed to allow Atlanta City Councilwoman Joyce Sheperd more time to negotiate with demonstrators, who want to turn the property into a community center in Brooks' memory. The mayor also said she had ridden through the area the week prior to the fatal shooting and found things to be peaceful.
Secoriea’s mother, Charmaine Turner, was in the SUV along with a friend when her daughter was shot.
"I had to watch my baby take her last breath in front of me," Turner said Monday.
Atlanta police Lt. Pete Malecki said last week that investigators believe the shots were fired intentionally after the vehicle attempted to avoid a “makeshift roadblock that was manned by numerous armed individuals.”
“Somebody knows something,” Turner said. “Call me. I just want to know why.”
Secoriea’s funeral will be held Wednesday at New Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta. Because of concerns about COVID-19, only those with an invitation can attend the memorial service. A public viewing will be held from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday at Murray Brothers Funeral Home.
