The family of a decorated U.S. Air Force soldier shot and killed by police three months ago was hit by another terrible tragedy this week when another family member was killed.
Chantemekki “Meka” Fortson’s 16-year-old son, Andre Fortson, was shot and killed just before 10 p.m. Tuesday night at an apartment complex in DeKalb County, Georgia, less than 90 days after her eldest son, 23-year-old American pilot Roger Fortson, was accidentally shot and killed by police.
According to a preliminary report, DeKalb County police said two groups fired shots at each other. The motive is unknown and still under investigation. Fox 5 Atlanta reported.
The shooter, Quintavious Zellner, 20, was arrested and charged with aggravated assault. He is being held in the DeKalb County Jail. Authorities said more arrests are expected.
The child’s mother said with sadness that she and her 10-year-old daughter Harmoni sought support from André after the death of her son, an American pilot. She called her youngest child her “comfort.”
Through her tears she said, “What kind of mother am I to lose two children in 90 days?” The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported.
Through tears, she said, “What kind of mother am I to lose two children in the space of 90 days?” Her son Andre Forston, 16, (pictured right) was fatally shot Tuesday night
Senior Airman Andre Fortson, 23, was fatally shot by police in May
The grieving mother said she and her 10-year-old daughter Harmoni sought support from André (pictured left) after the death of her eldest son.
Meka told the news agency that after Roger’s death, André stayed in her bed and held her until she fell asleep.
“He tried to be strong for me. He tried to make sure I was okay,” she said.
The teenager was a senior in high school and wanted to join the Air Force after graduation, like his late brother, his mother explained.
The Fortson family had recently moved to Stonecrest, an area of DeKalb, Georgia, about 20 miles away from the Summit Hill Apartments at 1500 Bouldercrest Road, where the family previously lived.
Meka recounted the heartbreaking events in which her son’s friend called her hysterically and said, “You have to come here. Your baby has been shot.”
When she arrived, her 16-year-old son was lying on a staircase in the covered walkway of the apartment building. An ambulance and police were on the scene, but she was told her child was gone.
According to DeKalb County police, Andre Fortson was found with a gunshot wound. According to Fox 5 News, doctors pronounced him dead at the scene.
Meka and her daughter are now the only survivors of their close-knit family, which has been torn apart by widespread gun violence in the city.
Among other things, she said: ‘This is not normal. He was 16. There has to be a change.’
Chantemekki Fortson, the mother of slain pilot Roger Fortson, right, looks on with her family at Fortson’s casket as they leave for a cemetery during his funeral at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, on May 17, 2024, in Stonecrest, Georgia.
Last month, the nonprofit Every Town named Georgia as the city with the ninth-highest rate of gun violence in the country — with a staggering 47 percent of gun-related homicides in Georgia. WSAV News reported.
Over the past decade, Georgia’s gun death rate has risen to 25 percent, 8 percent higher than the national average.
On May 3, Trooper Roger Fortson, who was FaceTimed into his Fort Walton Beach, Florida, apartment, was shot six times by Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Eddie Duran.
Police were called to the apartment complex after a neighbor heard someone being beaten. When officers arrived, she told officers which apartment the disturbance was in.
The woman responded, “1401.” The officer confirmed with the woman that he went to the fourth floor before taking the elevator to Fortson’s off-base residence, an apartment complex at 319 Racetrack Road in Okaloosa County.
When he got to the apartment door, the officer knocked once—and then again—and said, “Sheriff’s office. Open the door,” twice. When the door opened, the sheriff gave the command, “Stand back,” and “Don’t move.”
The officer then fired six shots in succession, causing the young soldier to stumble to the ground.
Officers’ bodycam footage shows fatal shooting involving young soldier
The mother posed with her child, who was tragically taken from her
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump is pictured next to a crying Chantemekki as she holds a photo of her beloved son
A witness who spoke to Fortson via FaceTime during the shooting said Fortson heard a knock on the door and asked who was there.
According to the witness, Fortson looked through the peephole when there was no response, but he heard “very aggressive knocking” again. He didn’t see anyone, however, and became concerned.
Out of concern, Fortson grabbed a gun, which the witness said he legally owned.
When he returned to his living room with the gun, authorities allegedly forced open his door and shot him six times.
The traumatized witness, who remained on the FaceTime call during the horrific shooting, recalled Fortson saying, “I can’t breathe,” after the shots were fired. Fortson later died at the hospital.
The officer involved in the incident has since been suspended while the investigation into the shooting continues.
The young soldier was stationed with the Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field, Florida. He entered active duty on November 19, 2019.
He was assigned to the 4th Special Operations Squadron as a special mission pilot. One of his duties as a crewman of the AC-130J Ghostrider was to load the helicopter’s 30mm and 105mm guns during the mission.
Following the terrible tragedy, the Air Force’s 1st Special Operations Wing said its priorities are “providing assistance to the family, supporting the squadron during this tragic time, and ensuring resources are available to all those affected.”
Meka said it had always been her son’s dream to serve his country and that he wanted to become a pilot.
“It’s unbelievable. Every day I try to go to bed early and wake up like it’s a dream,” she told Military.com.
“He just came back from a deployment, after fighting for us. With everything we have in our country, he fights for us and he came back to be killed, slaughtered so violently.”
“He was my gift, and they took my gift,” Roger’s mother said. “And they didn’t give it to me. God gave me that gift . . . and they took my gift.”