Trending Topics

Former EMT tried to help drive-in theater shooting victim

28-year-old shot at close range at movie; former EMT kept airway open while awaiting ambulance

By Alexis Stevens
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

ATLANTA — With her baby asleep in the back seat, Sara Morrison and her boyfriend were watching “The Raven” late Monday night at the Starlight Six Drive-In when they heard what sounded like two loud pops, then breaking glass and someone screaming.

“I saw Mitt standing there and screaming that he had been shot,” Morrison, of Newnan, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Thursday.

Morrison, a former EMT, said when she realized what happened, she knew she had to help. But there was little she could do for the man she didn’t even know, who apparently had been shot at close range.

“By the time that I got to him, I could tell that he was so bad off,” Morrison said. “I just gently moved his head to the side to help him breathe. And I told him help was on the way.”

An ambulance arrived within minutes, Morrison said. But it was still too late for 28-year-old Mitt Lenix, who died after being transported to Grady Memorial Hospital.

“I got to meet him in the last few minutes of life, and even I feel robbed,” Morrison said.

While friends and family members mourned the loss of Lenix, a martial arts expert and entertainer, the man accused of killing him was denied bond Thursday afternoon.

Quentric Shaymond Williams, 32, of Snellville has been charged with felony murder, accused of shooting and killing Lenix. Williams remained in DeKalb County jail Thursday night, one day after his arrest.

Lenix was on a date at the DeKalb drive-in Monday night when he was unable to start his Ford Escape, and he approached Williams’ vehicle and asked for help, according to police. But Williams instead allegedly opened fire, shooting Lenix in the chest before leaving the drive-in in his Ford F-150.

After leading police on a chase early Tuesday, Williams crashed his truck and ran, police said.

DeKalb County Sheriff’s deputies tracked the suspect to a Gwinnett County hotel, where he was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon.

Williams, whose criminal history includes two trips to state prison on drug convictions, was denied bond at his first appearance Thursday. His next court appearance is scheduled for 9 a.m. June 5.

A funeral service for Lenix is to be held at 7 p.m. Monday at Salem Baptist Church in McDonough. A memorial fund has been set up online at www.gofundme.com/mitt-lenix-fund.

Copyright 2012 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution