Man Charged with Felony Murder After Fatal Shooting Near Kennesaw State University

A fatal confrontation erupted at the Bixby Kennesaw apartments near Kennesaw State University last night, resulting in the death of one man and the injury of a woman. Cobb County police have identified the deceased as 24-year-old Jalen Parker, and they have taken 22-year-old Anthony Lockett into custody, charging him with felony murder and aggravated assault in connection with the incident, as per reports from FOX 5 Atlanta.

The violent exchange, which unfolded along the 3000 block of George Busbee Parkway, saw multiple shots fired inside and around the student apartment complex, police say an argument that initially occurred inside an apartment escalated after Lockett left and later returned with family members, armed, and resumed hostilities, information detailed by Atlanta News First echo these events. During the gunfire that ensued someone within the apartment retaliated, striking Lockett's mother, 40-year-old Antoinette Hammonds; she was found near the parking lot and is now in stable condition at Kennestone Hospital, while Parker succumbed to his injuries after being rushed to the same facility.

In the aftermath of the shooting, the campus community has been left to grapple with the loss. KSU President Kathy S. Schwaig expressed the university's condolences saying, "Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the victims’ family, friends, and the campus community during this incredibly difficult time," in a statement obtained by FOX 5 Atlanta. KSU has availed counseling services to students impacted by the tragedy urging them to reach out for support.

The Bixby apartment complex recently acquired by the KSU Foundation remains privately managed, and is not part of KSU's on-campus housing, yet its proximity to university grounds has stirred additional concern about student safety as students and staff are left to navigate the porous boundaries where academic life meets civic unrest, tragedy has the potential to strike where the veneer of collegiate safety is thinly applied, details FOX 5 Atlanta. In urging the community to offer any helpful information, authorities can be reached through the Cobb County Police Major Crimes Unit or through Crime Stoppers Greater Atlanta.