Georgia firefighter, wife shot dead inside home—toddler found unharmed

A Georgia couple, a Cherokee County firefighter and his wife, were found dead from gunshot wounds inside their home Thursday morning. The family's two-year-old child was found unharmed in the home and is now safe with family members.

Amber and Justin Hicks, both 31, were both killed in Cobb County by an unknown shooter inside the Acworth family home. The pair was discovered around 9:30 a.m., Cobb police spokesman Sgt. Wayne Delk said in a news release.

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Hannah Mabrey, a neighbor, said the incident left her in shock: "Police brings the child out holding him by his torso, runs him out, and the grandmother grabbed him, and the grandfather grabbed him, and they're crying and freaking out saying, 'Where's my baby?'"

Mabrey continued: "This is the nicest couple. They were young, they had a young child. They just moved here and were so excited to be homeowners."

"The whole neighborhood came together over it to support their family," Mabrey added. "They were really sweet people. I can't imagine who did this to them."

"Justin has touched and impacted many lives, and he will be dearly missed. Our hearts are broken as we mourn the loss of a member of our family and his lovely wife," commented Chief Tim Prather of the Cherokee Fire and Emergency Services, where Justin Hicks had been working for more than six years.

Prather also mentioned that Hicks had recently completed training to become a paramedic and was a "highly motivated energetic individual who deeply loved his job as a firefighter and consistently worked to do better and be better every day."

The shootings are being investigated as a double homicide, Delk told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday, confirming that authorities have no evidence to suggest murder-suicide. According to Delk, the fatal shootings took place sometime between Wednesday night and Thursday morning. There is no indication that the suspected shooter stayed in the area, police reported.