A chaotic chase involving a hijacked transit bus that spanned Fulton, Gwinnett and DeKalb counties ended Tuesday afternoon with a person shot to death and a felon arrested, officials said.
Joseph Grier, 39, was taken into custody at about 5:15 p.m. after the Gwinnett bus was stopped on Hugh Howell Road near Tucker, Atlanta police Chief Darin Schierbaum said during a news conference near the bus.
When officers cleared the bus, they found one person suffering from a gunshot wound, police said. The person was taken to the hospital but later died from their wounds. Their name was not released.
Police said 17 people, including the driver, were on the bus, but there were no other injuries. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens confirmed that the driver was held at gunpoint during the ordeal.
“My heart goes out to the family of the one individual that is deceased at this time. My heart also goes out to the individuals that had to endure this frightening journey across multiple jurisdictions,” Dickens said.
The bus began its wild ride after a fight broke out on the vehicle while it was in downtown Atlanta at 45 Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard, police said. Dispatchers received their first call around 4:30 p.m. about a gunman who was holding people hostage and that a firearm had potentially been discharged. An officer arrived a minute later and confronted Grier, who then forced the bus driver to drive off, officials said.
A second 911 caller reported they were receiving text messages from a family member inside the bus saying it had been hijacked. A final call came from a person who was inside the bus, and that caller remained on the line until the vehicle was finally stopped in DeKalb.
Atlanta police began to pursue the bus on I-85 near Spaghetti Junction, following it into Gwinnett. The bus exited onto Jimmy Carter Boulevard before heading south, with state troopers and police trailing behind it.
Multiple law enforcement agencies were involved in the pursuit, including Atlanta police, the Georgia State Patrol and APD’s aviation unit. DeKalb police and marshals helped surround the bus after it came to a stop, and a SWAT vehicle could be seen directly in front of it. The GBI will be assisting Atlanta police with the investigation.
During the chase, the bus sideswiped multiple cars that could not move out of the way in time. Patrol cars swarmed the vehicle as it traveled down Jimmy Carter Boulevard, with several racing ahead to either clear traffic with their lights and sirens or divert the runaway transit vehicle.
At times, confused motorists seemed unable to get clear of the huge column of law enforcement vehicles running ahead of and behind the rogue bus.
Grier is a felon with 19 previous arrests, authorities said.
Fulton court records show his prior arrests involved violent crimes. In June 2019, he was arrested by Atlanta police on aggravated assault and aggravated battery charges, according to court records. He stayed in jail until September 2020.
In February 2023, Grier was arrested and charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in DeKalb, jail records show. He was released three months later.
“This individual has held someone, a driver at gunpoint across multiple jurisdictions, and so we all have to say enough is enough when it comes to too many people having guns in their hands and using them in violence,” Dickens said.
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