Friday evening at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta turned into a nightmare when bullets tore through office windows, sending employees diving for cover. The attack left DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose dead and the suspected gunman, 30-year-old Patrick Joseph White of Kennesaw, Georgia, killed inside a nearby CVS.
A Targeted Strike Across from CDC Headquarters
The shooting began shortly before 5 p.m. at the Emory Point CVS, directly across from the CDC’s main entrance on Clifton Road. White, reportedly motivated by personal health concerns he blamed on the Covid-19 vaccine, opened fire on CDC buildings, striking at least four structures. Photos from inside revealed bullet holes above cubicle walls and shattered glass on floors.
CDC Director Susan Monarez said there were at least 40 bullet holes in two buildings, with more damage in a third. “It’s a miracle no one was killed here,” one employee told CNN. Staff described feeling like “sitting ducks” as bullets whizzed overhead.
GBI
Officer David Rose’s Final Moments
Officer Rose, 33, a Marine veteran and married father of two with a third child on the way, was shot when he responded to the scene. Witnesses say White turned his fire from the CDC to Rose’s patrol car as it arrived. Rose later died at Emory University Hospital, where his mother had worked for 17 years as an ICU nurse.
FBI Director Kash Patel called Rose “a hero who made the ultimate sacrifice,” while interim Police Chief Greg Padrick said he was “committed to serving the community.”
Massive Law Enforcement Response and Lockdown
The attack triggered an immediate lockdown at Emory University and surrounding areas, including two daycare centers—one on the CDC campus housing 92 children. Teachers swiftly enacted active shooter protocols, securing doors, silencing phones, and moving children to safe interior rooms. All children were reunited with families by 11 p.m.
Elsewhere, hospital patients and visitors sheltered in place. “Doctors, nurses, and valet parkers were running and screaming there was an active shooter,” recalled Randy Gold, who was escorting his father out of Emory Hospital.
Obtained by CNN
Shooter’s Arsenal and Possible Motive
White was heavily armed with two handguns, a rifle, a shotgun, and two backpacks of ammunition. Law enforcement sources say he had reached out for mental health assistance in recent weeks but made no direct threats. Authorities are investigating whether his reported health issues and vaccine grievances were central to his targeting of the CDC.
The shooting came the same week U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. canceled nearly $500 million in mRNA vaccine projects, an action celebrated by anti-vaccine activists but condemned by many in public health. Kennedy condemned the violence, writing, “No one should face violence while working to protect the health of others.”
CDC Staff Already Under Pressure
The incident struck an agency already in turmoil. Under the Trump administration’s 2026 budget proposal, the CDC faces funding cuts of more than 50%, program eliminations, and the transfer of key divisions to a new federal health entity. Nearly a quarter of its workforce has been lost since January.
In a Saturday Zoom meeting with roughly 800 employees, Monarez and CDC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Debra Houry acknowledged the trauma staff felt, whether present during the shooting or not. Leaders warned employees they might hear that their vaccine-related work was part of the shooter’s motive.
Community and Political Reactions
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens praised the swift police response and pledged city support for CDC staff. “My heart goes out to you… We stand with you,” he said, noting the “tough go” the agency has endured over the past year.
For those inside the CDC, the shooting was a stark reminder of the growing hostility facing public health workers. “We honor their service,” Kennedy said. “We remain united in our mission to protect and improve the health of every American.”
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is continuing to piece together the sequence of events that left an officer dead, a community shaken, and one of the nation’s top health agencies reeling from both physical and political attacks.