A bullet from celebratory gunfire pierced through a West End Atlanta home, narrowly missing a family inside, prompting a mother to warn of the dangers.
Mother Warns of Celebratory Gunfire Dangers
ATLANTA – A mother is raising awareness about the risks of celebratory gunfire after a bullet struck her home in West Side Atlanta. The bullet flew through a window and multiple walls, landing just inches from her family.
Shari Woods reported that she and her family are traumatized after the incident occurred shortly after midnight on New Year’s Day. Woods, her mother, and her 11-year-old son went outside to watch fireworks. They soon began to hear gunfire.
“I would say about 5–10 minutes in, it was just crazy,” Woods said. “You could just really tell that there was more gunfire than there were fireworks at that point.”
After hearing the gunfire, the family returned inside and sat on the couch. Soon after, Woods said they heard a window break and dropped to the floor. When they got up, they discovered a bullet had entered through a window, pierced multiple walls, and landed in a lotion bottle located inches from the couch.
“Those bullets have somewhere that they have to go,” Woods said. “They’re not going to stop in thin air, so if you’re going up, it’s coming down, and we have to stop this rhetoric that you need to hear a loud bang by a bullet.”
Woods filed a report with the Atlanta Police to document the incident. She hopes that sharing her experience will encourage people to reconsider shooting rounds into the air during celebrations.
Woods mentioned that her children have not returned to the home since the incident. “My son is pretty traumatized from it,” she said. “I likely will need to find somewhere else to live.”
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Location | West Side Atlanta |
| Date | New Year’s Day |
| Time | Minutes after midnight |
| Family Members Present | Shari Woods, her mother, her 11-year-old son |
| Incident Outcome | Bullet landed in a lotion bottle |
| Police Report Filed | Yes |
