Girl gunned down in Atlanta on Christmas Eve was set to play college basketball

ATLANTA — An Atlanta mother is heartbroken after she said her daughter was gunned down while she was outside on Christmas Eve.

Atlanta Police responded to the shooting in the 1100 block of Smith Street SW in Atlanta’s Pittsburgh neighborhood on Tuesday night just after 6 p.m. When officers got there, they found 18-year-old Sekya Smith dead from a gunshot wound.

“She didn’t deserve that,” Brittany Harp, Smith’s mother, said through tears. “It’s senseless. I just want justice for my baby.”

Harp said Sekya was a senior at Carver High School in Atlanta and was set to graduate in May. After graduation, she said her daughter had been accepted to Albany State to study criminal justice and play college basketball.

“Hold on to your kids. Hold on to them tight. I don’t wish this on a soul; I don’t wish this on nobody,” Harp said. 

Harp said that Sekya also played softball and ran track at Carver High School.

On Christmas Eve, Brittany said that her teenage daughter was outside at a friend’s house, just down the street from her home, when she was shot. 

“I got a knock at the door that she’s been shot in her chest,” Harp said.

Her mom said it was a drive-by shooting.

Atlanta Police have not released any further details about the shooting or identified a suspect. Harp called out the shooter, questioning how they could take her daughter’s life and “sleep at night.”

“You’re a coward,” Harp said. “Literally, you’re a coward.”

Carver High School’s athletics page posted on social media to remember Sekya and ask for prayers and support from the community.

Purpose Built Schools Atlanta, which operates Carver STEAM Academy, where Sekya was a senior, released the following statement on Thursday night:

The PBSA family is devastated about the tragic death of senior, Sekya Smith. Smith was not only a star athlete and student, but she was also a cherished friend and member of our Carver STEAM family. Everyone who knew Sekya loved her; she touched countless lives and will be forever missed. Carver STEAM will offer counseling to staff and students and is planning a memorial service in her honor.

The family has created an online fundraiser to help with funeral expenses. You can donate here. 

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