A mother delivering food was killed, and the suspect was arrested after a chase, officials said.
PALMETTO, Ga. — Students returned to Palmetto Elementary School on Feb. 11 under extra support and heightened police presence, one day after a 34-year-old mother delivering a DoorDash order was shot and killed just outside the building, triggering a hard lockdown and a large, multi-county search that ended with an arrest.
The victim, Eboni Anderson, died near the school’s front entrance on Feb. 10, according to the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office, while children and staff remained inside classrooms as administrators coordinated with officers. Authorities identified the suspect as Christopher Loris Ates, 39, and said he was captured in Middle Georgia after a pursuit and crash. Officials have said the incident appeared to be domestic-related, but they have not released a detailed motive or explained why the confrontation unfolded on school property. The case now moves toward charging decisions and court proceedings in Fulton County as investigators continue to gather evidence and interview witnesses.
For families, the most urgent question Tuesday was whether students were safe. School officials said the campus went into a hard lockdown shortly after 11 a.m. after a staff member heard shots and pressed an emergency alert button. The alert locked doors and notified law enforcement, and administrators began working with police to manage the scene outside the entrance. Officers responding to reports of gunfire found Anderson’s body near the front of the school, according to local reporting that cited investigators. No students or school employees were physically injured, officials said, and authorities later moved more than 500 children to Bear Creek Middle School to be dismissed to their families.
When classes resumed Wednesday, school leaders said counselors and additional support staff were available for students and employees. Parents described cautious drop-offs and children asking questions after the sudden disruption of the prior day. Atlanta News First quoted one parent, Austin Managan, saying his children were nervous returning to the building. The principal, Jacqueline Bowens, told families in a message that no students or staff were involved and that people inside the building were not in danger during the incident. District spokesperson Brian Noyes said the shooting happened very close to the front doors, within a short distance of the entrance, which heightened anxiety even as officials emphasized that the threat remained outside.
Authorities have described the shooting as a domestic dispute that spilled onto school grounds. Investigators have not publicly outlined the relationship between Anderson and Ates in an official briefing, but local outlets reported that relatives and friends said the two had been in a relationship. The school district said Anderson was not employed at Palmetto Elementary. Fulton County Schools confirmed she was a parent of students in the district, though her children did not attend Palmetto. Atlanta News First and People reported that Anderson was the mother of two 8-year-old twins and an 18-month-old. In interviews, family members and friends described her as devoted to her boys and willing to take on extra work, including food delivery, to support them.
As the school stabilized its campus Tuesday afternoon, the law enforcement effort widened across county lines. Authorities said Ates fled and was later located in Middle Georgia. A license plate reader system flagged a vehicle associated with a homicide earlier that day near Russell Parkway and Georgia Highway 41, officials said, and an attempted traffic stop turned into a chase. Deputies said the pursuit reached Twiggs County, where the vehicle hit a semi-truck, struck a bridge guardrail and went down an embankment. Officials said Ates tried to run into woods before he was apprehended. Investigators also said a child was found inside the vehicle, crying, and was evaluated by medics before being turned over to juvenile authorities.
Ates was booked into the Houston County Jail on charges that included reckless driving, fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer, and second-degree cruelty to children, according to officials and local reporting. Authorities said additional charges were pending in Fulton County, where investigators said they were finalizing murder charges and seeking further warrants. Officials have not said when he will be transferred to Fulton County or when he will make his first appearance before a judge there. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that state corrections records show Ates spent nearly a decade in prison in connection with a 2006 Houston County case involving armed robbery and a firearm charge, and that he was released in 2016. Investigators have not said how that record fits into the current case beyond identifying him as the suspect.
DoorDash said it was investigating and working with law enforcement. In a statement shared by multiple outlets, a company spokesperson said the situation was tragic and offered condolences to Anderson’s loved ones. The killing also drew attention to the way delivery work can place workers in public spaces that are not typical delivery destinations, including schools, during active hours. Officials did not say what order Anderson was fulfilling or who requested it, and investigators have not said whether the intended recipient was connected to the school. Those unanswered questions have become part of the community’s unsettled feeling as families balanced relief that students were unharmed with grief over the life lost at the edge of a school day.
Relatives spoke publicly about Anderson as the investigation moved forward. Her stepfather, Tariq Robinson, told a local station that the family was devastated and described her as a loving daughter and a devoted mother. Friends told reporters they were stunned the shooting happened in front of an elementary school in broad daylight. At the reunification site Tuesday, adults hugged children tightly and wiped away tears as buses arrived. One fourth grader, Jordan Taylor, was quoted saying, “I thought we wouldn’t make it, but we did,” a short line that captured the fear many families felt during the lockdown even as officials said the threat was outside.
Investigators said the school reopened Wednesday and urged the public to stay clear of the campus during the initial response for safety reasons. The next milestone is the formal filing of charges in Fulton County and the suspect’s transfer for court proceedings, which authorities said were in motion but had not been scheduled publicly as of Thursday. Officials have not released a full narrative of what led up to the shooting, and they have not said whether more warrants are expected.
Author note: Last updated February 12, 2026.