Corey Adams says he almost wishes there had been an argument.
Then perhaps, he and his friend Christopher Middleton would have been on guard when they left the Duluth Applebee's where they had gone to celebrate a new job Saturday.
Instead, he says, they had a brief back-and-forth with another patron about the NFL playoff game between the San Francisco 49ers and the New Orleans Saints, and were totally caught off-guard when that patron allegedly opened fire on them in the restaurant parking lot, grazing Adams and shooting Middleton in the chest.
Because of the ongoing investigation, Gwinnett police would not confirm details of the shooting, but Adams spoke with the AJC about the incident.
"We didn't get into it with him. Nothing was said crazy. There was no name calling. All I said was ‘Okay, we scored, Woo-hoo!'"
Adams, of Sandy Springs, and his girlfriend Bianca Clemons and Middleton, of Stone Mountain, had gone to Applebee's at 2085 Pleasant Hill Road to celebrate Middleton's new job. They arrived around 4:20 p.m. The trio was seated at a table near the door. The alleged shooter, Donald Ray Ayro, 31, was sitting at the bar, his back to the trio, recalled Adams.
The game began at 4:30. Though not big 49er fans, Middleton and Adams decided to root for that team.
"I will never forget what happened next," said Adams. "The 49ers scored the first touchdown. It was 7-0. All of a sudden, the guy turns around and yells to us, ‘Bet you guys don't score again!' Adams said he told Ayro: "Man, it's early in the game. We got a long way to go. You should just chill out."
He claims Ayro, who had a pill bottle and a plate of food at his side, said, ‘Yeah, I got something for you. I'm gonna pop a pill to make me insane.' We were all wondering what's wrong with him," said Adams, and we decided that that was the end of that conversation," Adams said. Adams said Ayro took a pill from the bottle, drank beer and called the waitress over and told her to bring his check.
He didn't even touch his food, Adams said.
When Ayro left, the score was still 7-0, said Adams. Adams said he watched the manager and a couple members of the waitstaff go to the window to watch Ayro as he left.
Adams and his friends continued to eat, drink and watch the game for another couple of hours.
They left at halftime, he said, and planned to go home and change and continue their celebation at a night club. "As we were walking to our car, I vaguely see a guy with a hoodie pulled over his head. It didn't even look like the same guy."
According to Adams, Ayro walked up to Middleton, who was getting in on the passenger side. "He said, ‘hey man.' Chris said ‘what's up?' and he just looked at Chris and shot him in the stomach," Adams said.
"I took off running, he shot at me and missed and I fell down. He was running after me and I got up and kept running, zig-zagging, trying to get away. I didn't even know I had been shot."
Adams said he ran back into Applebee's, yelling that he and his friend had been shot, and asking that someone call police.
Bianca Clemons had crawled under her car when the shooting erupted, then while Adams was being chased, she ran back into the restaurant and into the ladies room. She was not injured.
Middleton was still on the parking lot when police arrived. He was taken to Gwinnett Medical Center, where he remains in critical condition. Adams had a minor graze wound to his head. He was treated at the scene and released.
Witnesses provided police with a description of the alleged shooter and the vehicle he left in. A short time later, police caught up with Ayro, of Stone Mountain, who was traveling south on I-85 near Jimmy Carter Boulevard and stopped him for questioning.
Ayro was taken to Gwinnett County Jail and held without bond. He has been charged with two counts of aggravated assault, being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
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