Man Gets 20 Years For Shooting At Strangers At Hospital In Marietta

MARIETTA, GA -- A South Georgia man who fired at random couples outside a Cobb County parking lot while high on drugs was sentenced to 20 years, District Attorney Vic Reynolds said recently. Cody Allen Williams, 26, of Statesboro, said he was high on "ice," a street name for methamphetamines, when he started shooting at people in November 2016, the DA said.

Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident, which happened in the emergency room parking area of Wellstar Kennestone Hospital in Marietta. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

Williams and his girlfriend had gone to the hospital to visit his brother when they went to their vehicle and encountered a couple passing by. Williams began to yell at them but the strangers ignored him, Reynolds said.

Soon, another couple walked pass Williams, who by this time had pulled a gun and fired at them. “Both of these couples were completely innocent folks who never said anything to the Defendant,” Assistant District Attorney Marty First said.

Williams then hopped into his vehicle and fled the scene. That's when a Marietta police officer began following them, the DA said. Williams was seen on dash-cam video throwing his gun out the window, Reynolds said.

Williams and his girlfriend then crashed his vehicle on a ramp to Interstate 75, the DA said. Williams and his girlfriend were injured in the crash and rushed back to Kennestone, where they were treated.

Like us on Facebook

At the trial, which took a Cobb jury 30 minutes to decide, Williams admitted to using marijuana and alcohol before the shooting.

"A nurse who treated Williams after the crash testified that Williams told her he had been using ‘ice,’ a street name for methamphetamine," the DA said in a news release.

Of Williams' 20-year sentence, he must serve 14 behind bars, per Cobb Superior Court Judge Kimberly Childs.

Image via Shutterstock