Police say the child’s father was arrested and charged a day later.
SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. — A 2-year-old boy was fatally shot Wednesday afternoon inside a Sandy Springs apartment complex on Sandalwood Drive, prompting a large police response and leaving residents shaken as investigators later arrested the child’s father.
The shooting, reported around 2 p.m., unfolded inside an apartment at the Carlyle of Sandy Springs in the 2600 block of Sandalwood Drive, police said. Richard Willis, the child’s father, was charged with second-degree murder and second-degree cruelty to children after investigators said the death stemmed from an improperly secured firearm. Detectives have said key details, including supervision at the time of the shot, remained under review.
Within hours, the complex looked like a crime scene from the street. Officers blocked off part of a parking area and stretched tape along sections of the property while investigators focused on the apartment where the child was found. Residents reported helicopters circling overhead and patrol cars moving in and out as detectives interviewed people and collected evidence. Aalyhia Leggard, who lives at the complex, said she returned home to find the scene cordoned off outside her door and heard neighbors talking about a child getting access to a gun. “It’s very sad and unfortunate,” she said.
Police have said medics attempted to revive the toddler but he died at the scene. Authorities did not immediately release the child’s name in initial public statements, and detectives said they were still determining exactly how the gunfire happened. Even as officers worked the scene, police emphasized there was no continuing threat to the public, a point that offered little comfort to residents who watched investigators remain for hours. Ryan Joseph, another neighbor, said he struggled to believe something so severe could happen where he lives. “It’s very shocking and upsetting for sure,” Joseph said. “That shouldn’t be happening to any child or adult.”
By late Wednesday and into Thursday, more detail emerged through court filings describing the moments before the shooting. In those records, investigators alleged the child gained access to a loaded handgun that was not properly stored. The documents describe the weapon as a 9mm pistol left in a fanny pack on a bed, and they allege the child fired it and suffered a fatal injury. The filings frame the case as one of criminal negligence rather than an intentional attack, focusing on how quickly a small child can reach a gun that is left loaded and unsecured in a home.
Police arrested Willis in connection with the shooting and said he was taken to the Fulton County Jail. He faces two felony counts, second-degree murder and second-degree cruelty to children. Investigators have not publicly detailed whether any additional charges could be considered or whether other adults in the home will be scrutinized beyond witness interviews. Authorities also have not said whether any surveillance footage exists in the building, what neighbors may have heard, or whether forensic testing has been completed on the firearm, all steps that are commonly used to reconstruct the timeline.
The apartment complex has been identified by different names in local reporting, including ReNew Dunwoody, reflecting property branding that can change even when the address remains the same. What has remained consistent in official statements is the location, Sandalwood Drive, and the time, about 2 p.m. Wednesday, when police said they were called to the home. For residents, the address is now tied to a tragedy that broke the routine of a weekday afternoon and turned hallways and stairwells into places officers walked through with evidence bags and cameras.
The case also renewed attention on a recurring pattern in child shootings that law enforcement agencies and researchers have tracked for years: many incidents happen inside homes, often after a child finds a gun that was left accessible. Investigators in Sandy Springs have not released a full narrative of who was where in the apartment at the moment the child went upstairs or when the weapon was last checked. They have not said whether the gun was normally kept in the fanny pack, whether a lockbox was present, or whether the weapon was stored differently on other days. Those unknowns can become central issues in court, where prosecutors must prove what a defendant knew and what steps were taken or not taken.
As the legal process begins, the next steps are expected to include an initial court appearance, bond considerations, and scheduling of future hearings in Fulton County. Investigators may also await medical examiner findings and complete laboratory work on the firearm and any related evidence. Police have said the investigation remains ongoing, and they have not released information about supervision at the time the shot was fired, a detail that often becomes clearer as detectives interview family members and review phone records and other data.
For neighbors, the most immediate impact has been emotional, not procedural. Residents described a stunned quiet after officers cleared, with people talking in small groups about what they saw and what they heard. Some said they had never seen such a large police response at the complex. Others said the sight of tape and flashing lights outside a family home is hard to forget, especially when the victim was a toddler whose death was announced before many residents even knew a child lived in the unit.
Authorities said Thursday that the case remained active as detectives continued to review the circumstances of the shooting and prepare the matter for court. Police have not announced when the next public update will be released or when a first hearing will be scheduled.
Author note: Last updated February 19, 2026.