Forsyth County teen indicted after shooting at car near church lot

A Forsyth County teenager has been indicted on six counts after prosecutors say a stolen handgun was used to fire at an occupied vehicle near a church parking lot in Cumming. The case keeps attention on how guns move into teenage hands and how quickly violence can reach places families expect to be safe.

The indictment comes as Forsyth County families are still absorbing another church-parking-lot case that drew wide concern earlier this year. Forsyth County sheriff’s deputies said a 15-year-old girl was hit by a black SUV around 8:45 p.m. on Jan. 14 in the parking lot of Abundant Life Church on Strickland Road, just after she left a Wednesday evening youth service. WSB-TV Channel 2 Atlanta said the teen suffered severe injuries and later struggled with anxiety.

That January case underscored how church parking lots have become a point of concern for deputies, parents and congregations across Forsyth County. It also showed how a routine youth gathering can turn into an emergency in seconds, with a child hurt in a place meant for fellowship, drop-offs and late-night pickups.

The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office says its Major Crimes Unit houses Victim Advocates who contact victims of major crimes. The office says its mission is to protect life and property, deter crime, create relationships in the community and set an example of professionalism in service to others.

Recent local coverage has also included another church-parking-lot incident in which a person was struck, and deputies have asked for the public’s help in cases tied to church parking lots and youth activities. That pattern has kept the focus on vehicle-related violence and hit-and-run cases near places of worship, especially in and around Cumming and Strickland Road.

The six-count indictment now pushes the gun case deeper into the court process, with the alleged use of a stolen handgun at the center of the allegations. For local families and churchgoers, the message is blunt: parking lots around worship services are no longer being viewed as low-risk spaces, and deputies are treating them as places where safety demands the same attention as the sanctuary itself.