A call about a gunman near the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ended in tragedy late Friday afternoon, when a DeKalb County police officer was shot and killed in the line of duty.
🚨 Why It Matters: The loss of 33-year-old Officer David Rose is not just a wound to the police department, but to a young family now left without a husband and father. He leaves behind a wife, two children, and a third child on the way.
🔎 What Happened: Just before 5 p.m., officers responded to reports of shots fired near Clifton Road and CDC Parkway, an area that includes a daycare and several CDC buildings.
- Investigators say the suspect had fired at multiple buildings before officers arrived.
- More than 90 children were inside one of those buildings at the time. None were hurt.
- Officer Rose was rushed to Emory University Hospital but died from his injuries.
Interim Police Chief Greg Padrick said Rose “was committed to serving the community” and urged residents to keep his family and the department in their prayers.
📍 The Bigger Picture: The CDC campus went into lockdown during the incident. Federal and local agencies are now reviewing security at the site. Authorities are still investigating whether the suspect died from police gunfire or a self-inflicted wound.
The Sources: DeKalb County Police Department, Atlanta Police Department.
How to Read and Understand the News
Truth doesn’t bend because we dislike it.
Facts don’t vanish when they make us uncomfortable.
Events happen whether we accept them or not.
Good reporting challenges us. The press isn’t choosing sides — it’s relaying what official, verified sources say. Blaming reporters for bad news is like blaming a thermometer for a fever.
Americans have a history of misunderstanding simple things. In the 1980s, A&W rolled out a 1/3-pound burger to compete with McDonald’s Quarter Pounder. It failed because too many people thought 1/3 was smaller than 1/4. If we can botch basic math, we can certainly misread the news.
Before dismissing a story, ask yourself:
- What evidence backs this?
- Am I reacting to facts or feelings?
- What would change my mind?
- Am I just shooting the messenger?
And one more: Am I assuming bias just because I don’t like the story?
Smart news consumers seek truth, not comfort.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
