Crime & Public Safety
Crime & Public Safety

Youth suicides in Georgia rise sharply

JUNE 7, 2017 WINDER Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith talks about the investigation into the suicide of a 9-year-old boy in May. In less than two months, 14 children in Georgia have killed themselves, a disturbing number that suggests a record. KENT D. JOHNSON / AJC

Credit: Kent Johnson

Credit: Kent Johnson

JUNE 7, 2017 WINDER Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith talks about the investigation into the suicide of a 9-year-old boy in May. In less than two months, 14 children in Georgia have killed themselves, a disturbing number that suggests a record. KENT D. JOHNSON / AJC
By Rhonda Cook
June 12, 2017

On a late Wednesday afternoon in May, a 9-year-old boy stepped off his Barrow County school bus, walked into his house, took a gun from the closet and shot himself in the head.

The third grader in the small community of Winder, nestled between Atlanta and Athens, became the 16th child in Georgia to kill himself since the beginning of February.

Georgia is on track for what could be a record number of youth suicides this year. Read the full story at myajc.com

In less than two months, 14 children in Georgia have killed themselves, a disturbing number that suggests a record.

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Rhonda Cook
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