Two teenage boys have been killed and three more children injured in a shootout that stemmed from a dispute on social media.
Police rushed to the scene at an apartment complex in southwest Atlanta at around 5pm on November 17.
Although formal IDs of the victims have not been released police have said that the two boys killed were aged 14 and 16, and the wounded were two boys, 11 and 15, and a 15-year-old girl.
The two boys killed were pronounced dead at the scene and the other injured minors were taken to hospital.
Deputy Chief Charles Hampton Jr. said: "We know that there was some type of dispute on social media that escalated to gunfire.
"One group of individuals came to the apartment with their guns and then the other group fired their weapons."
When asked if the incident could be described as a shootout, Hampton said that would be a fair assessment since "multiple people were shooting."
The violence kicked off in the apartment before spilling outside where the two boys who died were found.
The condition of the injured minors has not been released but Hampton did reveal that all had been shot and one of them was grazed by a bullet.
Homicide detectives were interviewing multiple other individuals to determine what involvement they may have had.
"I hate being here talking about kids and gunfire," Hampton said, lamenting that there are "too many guns in the hands of our youth."
"This should be a time that we are getting ready for the holidays, but we have at least two families that will be planning for funerals," he continued, "and then you may have some other families who were significantly involved and have to deal with that."
This is the second serious shooting involving teenagers in as many days.
On Friday December 16, two 16-year-old boys were killed and two more teens injured in a shooting outside a school in Chicago.
Police in Illinois are hunting the shooter following the incident by Benito Juarez High School in the Pilsen neighbourhood of the Illinois city on Friday afternoon.
The shooting happened at about 2.45pm local time when classes were leaving the school for the day, according to local media.
Three boys aged 16 and a 15-year-old girl were hit outside the school, confirmed Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford.
All four were taken to Stroger Hospital with one of the boys dead on arrival and another has also now died after being in "traumatic arrest" when he reached the hospital.
The other two victims are said to be in a stable condition.
Police are now reportedly looking for a suspect who was wearing a black mask, black hoodie and black North Face jacket, and was seen running along Cermak Road and up Ashland Avenue.
