{
  "id": "2025-08-08-emory-university-cdc-shooting",
  "slug": "emory-university-cdc-shooting-2025-08-08",
  "institution": {
    "name": "Emory University",
    "shortName": "Emory",
    "state": "GA",
    "type": "private-r1",
    "alertSystemName": "Emory Emergency",
    "alertPlatform": "Rave Mobile Safety",
    "enrollment": 16000
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2025-08-08",
    "type": "active-shooter",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "resolution": "confirmed-threat",
    "headline": "Gunman fired at the CDC entrance nearby; a police officer was killed responding",
    "headlinePublic": "Gunman fired at the CDC entrance nearby; a police officer was killed responding",
    "summary": "On August 8, 2025, a lone gunman opened fire at Emory Point near the main entrance to the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention](https://abcnews.com/US/active-shooter-reported-emory-universitys-atlanta-campus/story?id=124495968) on Clifton Road. [Emory University issued an active shooter alert](https://x.com/EmoryUniversity/status/1953932710046564416) at 5:02 PM EDT directing the campus to shelter in place. DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose was killed in the line of duty while responding to the incident. The shooter was also killed.",
    "outcome": "The suspect, Patrick Joseph White, 30, of Kennesaw (Cobb County), Georgia, was found dead on the second floor of the CVS at Emory Point; authorities could not immediately determine whether his fatal wound was self-inflicted or from police fire. DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose, 33, the first officer to respond, was critically wounded and died at Emory University Hospital. No Emory students, faculty, or staff were physically injured. The shelter-in-place was lifted around 6:30 PM EDT.",
    "casualties": {
      "killed": 1,
      "injured": 0
    }
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestampApprox": "Approximately 5:02 PM EDT on August 8, 2025",
      "channel": "twitter-x",
      "verbatimText": "Emory Emergency:  Active shooter on Emory Atlanta Campus at Emory Point CVS. RUN, HIDE, FIGHT. Avoid the area. Shelter in place.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/EmoryUniversity/status/1953932710046564416",
      "sourceDescription": "@EmoryUniversity on X (verbatim raw t.co)",
      "annotations": [
        "This active-shooter alert was distributed via email and text at 5:02 PM EDT on August 8, 2025, per The Emory Wheel; an earlier 'police emergency' text went out at approximately 4:50 PM EDT",
        "The alert uses the RUN, HIDE, FIGHT protocol in all caps, indicating the severity of the situation",
        "The shooting location at Emory Point CVS is an apartment and retail complex bordering Emory's Atlanta campus, directly across from the CDC main entrance on Clifton Road"
      ],
      "characterCount": 128
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "update",
      "timestampApprox": "Between 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM EDT on August 8, 2025",
      "channel": "sms",
      "verbatimText": "Emory Emergency: Active shooter on Emory Atlanta Campus at Emory Point CVS. RUN, HIDE, FIGHT. Avoid the area. Continue shelter in place. Police on scene.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/EMORY_CEPAR/status/1953938807234998570",
      "sourceDescription": "EMORY_CEPAR official X account (@EMORY_CEPAR) tweet",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim text from the EMORY_CEPAR (Emory Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response) official X account",
        "Emory Police Department officers were among the first to respond and engage the shooter on Clifton Road",
        "The shelter-in-place remained in effect even after the suspect was confirmed down, as police continued to secure the area"
      ],
      "characterCount": 153
    },
    {
      "sequence": 3,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "timestampApprox": "Approximately 6:34 PM EDT on August 8, 2025",
      "channel": "sms",
      "verbatimText": "Emory Emergency: A police emergency continues on the Emory Atlanta Campus at Emory Point. Avoid the area. Shelter in place has been lifted.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/EMORY_CEPAR/status/1953947882668581297",
      "sourceDescription": "EMORY_CEPAR official X account (@EMORY_CEPAR) tweet announcing shelter-in-place lifted",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim text from the EMORY_CEPAR official X account; shelter-in-place was lifted at approximately 6:30-6:34 PM EDT per The Emory Wheel",
        "DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose, 33, a former US Marine who deployed to Afghanistan and graduated DeKalb Police Academy Class 138 on March 31, 2025, was killed; he left behind a wife and three children, one unborn",
        "Police were operating under the theory that the gunman targeted the CDC, possibly motivated by grievances related to COVID-19 vaccines"
      ],
      "characterCount": 139
    }
  ],
  "context": "On August 8, 2025, at approximately 4:50 PM EDT, Patrick Joseph White, 30, of Kennesaw, Georgia, opened fire at Emory Point, an apartment and retail complex on Clifton Road bordering Emory University's Atlanta campus and directly across from the [main entrance to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention](https://abcnews.com/US/active-shooter-reported-emory-universitys-atlanta-campus/story?id=124495968). Emory University issued an [active shooter alert via Twitter/X](https://x.com/EmoryUniversity/status/1953932710046564416) at 5:02 PM EDT directing the entire campus to shelter in place using RUN, HIDE, FIGHT protocol. Emory Police Department officers were among the first responders and [engaged the lone shooter on Clifton Road](https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/active-shooter-reported-atlanta-emory-university-cdc/). [DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose, 33](https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2025/08/11/dekalb-officer-killed-cdc-shooting-david-rose-tribute-public-service), the first officer to respond, was critically wounded and died at Emory University Hospital; a former US Marine who deployed to Afghanistan, he had entered the DeKalb Police Academy in September 2024, graduated Class 138 on March 31, 2025, and left behind a wife and three children, one unborn. The suspect, [Patrick Joseph White, 30](https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2025/08/09/gunman-killed-near-emory-university-cdc-identified/), was found dead on the second floor of the Emory Point CVS. Police [operated under the theory that White targeted the CDC](https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/emory-university-atlanta-campus-shooter-what-we-know), possibly motivated by grievances related to the COVID-19 vaccine. The [shelter-in-place was lifted around 6:30 PM EDT](https://president.emory.edu/communications/2025/08/09-08-active-shooter-joint-message.html). No Emory students, faculty, or staff were physically injured.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "The shooter appeared to target the CDC headquarters rather than Emory University itself, but the campus alert system was activated due to the proximity of the shooting to campus",
    "Emory's alert used the explicit RUN, HIDE, FIGHT protocol; a 'police emergency' text went out at approximately 4:50 PM EDT and the active-shooter alert followed at 5:02 PM EDT",
    "The incident highlighted the vulnerability of campus communities to off-campus violence in adjacent areas, particularly when federal facilities are nearby"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Emory University emergency alert on Twitter/X",
      "url": "https://x.com/EmoryUniversity/status/1953932710046564416",
      "type": "official-social"
    },
    {
      "title": "EMORY_CEPAR update tweet, active shooter, continue shelter in place",
      "url": "https://x.com/EMORY_CEPAR/status/1953938807234998570",
      "type": "official-social"
    },
    {
      "title": "EMORY_CEPAR tweet, shelter in place lifted",
      "url": "https://x.com/EMORY_CEPAR/status/1953947882668581297",
      "type": "official-social"
    },
    {
      "title": "Statement on Yesterday's Shooting Incident (Emory University President)",
      "url": "https://president.emory.edu/communications/2025/08/09-08-active-shooter-joint-message.html",
      "type": "official-archive"
    },
    {
      "title": "Officer killed, suspect identified in shooting near CDC headquarters (ABC News)",
      "url": "https://abcnews.com/US/active-shooter-reported-emory-universitys-atlanta-campus/story?id=124495968",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Gunman dead in Atlanta shooting near CDC and Emory University (CBS News)",
      "url": "https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/active-shooter-reported-atlanta-emory-university-cdc/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Emory University Atlanta shooter: What we know (Fox 5 Atlanta)",
      "url": "https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/emory-university-atlanta-campus-shooter-what-we-know",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "DeKalb Officer David Rose remembered after fatal CDC shooting (Axios Atlanta)",
      "url": "https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2025/08/11/dekalb-officer-killed-cdc-shooting-david-rose-tribute-public-service",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Suspect in shooting near Emory, CDC identified by GBI (Atlanta News First)",
      "url": "https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2025/08/09/gunman-killed-near-emory-university-cdc-identified/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Active shooter causes 'police emergency' at Emory Point (The Emory Wheel)",
      "url": "https://www.emorywheel.com/article/2025/08/active-shooter-causes-police-emergency-at-emory-point",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "high",
  "tags": [
    "active-shooter",
    "cdc",
    "officer-killed",
    "line-of-duty-death",
    "covid-grievance",
    "georgia",
    "private-university",
    "run-hide-fight",
    "adjacent-facility",
    "off-campus-threat"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-02",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-07-18",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}