Two people were shot Saturday afternoon on the 1600 block of Lakewood Avenue SE in Southeast Atlanta, and both victims were alert, conscious and breathing when officers arrived, according to Atlanta Police. Investigators are still working to determine what led to the shooting and whether the victims were targeted.
Atlanta Police responded to the 1600 block of Lakewood Avenue SE and found two people who had been shot, according to WSB-TV. The outlet reported that both victims were alert and breathing, though further details on their conditions, identities and what prompted the gunfire had not been released as of Saturday evening.
A Block With a Troubled Recent Past
Saturday's shooting is not the first time gunfire has erupted on this exact stretch of Lakewood Avenue SE. In March 2025, a 27-year-old man died from gunshot wounds at 1676 Lakewood Ave. SE, a fatal shooting Hoodline covered in its piece on the fatal Lakewood shooting at the time.
About 35 months before Saturday's shooting, in November 2023, a 37-year-old man was killed in a shooting at a gas station in the same 1600 block near McDonough Boulevard SE, according to Atlanta Police Department records. More recently, in November 2025, officers responded to an aggravated assault at 1683 Lakewood Avenue SE, where a physical struggle inside a store ended with a suspect shooting a man in the leg, per the Atlanta Police Department. Hoodline also reported on a separate non-fatal, acquaintance-involved shooting near Lakewood Avenue SW and Nelms Drive SW on August 31, 2025.
Citywide Numbers Tell a Different Story
The repeated violence on this one block stands in contrast to Atlanta's broader crime trends. The city recorded 98 homicides in 2025, about a 22.2% decline from 126 in 2024, bringing Atlanta's annual homicide total below 100 for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to CBS News. Mid-year 2026 public safety statistics released by the City of Atlanta showed a further 16% drop in homicides compared to mid-2025, along with a 21% decrease in overall crime since 2022.
Atlanta Police leadership has pointed to escalating interpersonal disputes as the primary driver behind the city's homicides and non-fatal shootings, prompting calls for expanded community-based conflict resolution programs, the same CBS News report noted. Atlanta Police Department Zone 3 covers 16 Southeast Atlanta neighborhoods, including Lakewood Heights, Pittsburgh and Mechanicsville.
Violence Has Persisted Nearby
A Zone 3 facility is located on Metropolitan Parkway. Gun violence has also persisted at other nearby locations, including South Bend Park, where Hoodline reported a man was shot dead in September, marking the park's third fatal shooting since 2023.
Anyone with information about Saturday's shooting is urged to contact Crime Stoppers of Greater Atlanta, which offers a standard reward of up to $5,000 for anonymous tips leading to an arrest and indictment, according to the Atlanta Police Foundation. Tips can be submitted by phone or online.
It remains unknown whether the two victims shot Saturday knew each other, whether they were deliberately targeted, or whether the shooting began indoors or outside. Atlanta Police have not said whether Zone 3 plans to add targeted patrols or surveillance to the Lakewood Avenue business strip in response to the recurring violence.
