In the summer of 1999, a wave of violence shattered the bustling city of Atlanta, leaving a trail of death and questions in its wake. Among the victims was Kevin Middleton Dial, a 36-year-old man who found himself in the wrong place at the most tragic of times. His life was cut short on July 29, 1999, during a shooting spree that began days earlier and culminated in a city-wide manhunt.
The perpetrator of this horrific series of events was Mark O. Barton, a 44-year-old day trader.
His violent rampage did not begin in the high-rise office buildings of Atlanta's Buckhead district but in the quiet confines of his own home in Stockbridge, a suburb south of the city. There, in the days leading up to the public massacre, Barton first murdered his wife, Leigh Ann, and then his two children, Matthew and Mychelle. He used a hammer to carry out these brutal acts, concealing their bodies before heading into the city.
On that fateful Thursday, Barton, armed with a. 45-caliber Colt 1911A1 and a 9mm Glock 17, walked into the offices of Momentum Securities, a day trading firm where he had previously been a client. Inside, he opened fire, and among those he killed was Kevin Middleton Dial. Witnesses reported that Barton's demeanor was chillingly casual before he began shooting. After leaving a scene of carnage at Momentum Securities, Barton crossed the street to another trading firm, All-Tech Investment Group, and continued his deadly assault. In total, nine people were fatally shot in the two offices, with another thirteen injured.
The motive behind Barton's actions appeared to be rooted in severe financial losses he had recently suffered from day trading. In notes he left behind, he expressed anger and blamed others for his financial ruin. These writings, however, offered a fractured and disturbing glimpse into a mind descending into violence, as he also claimed to be taking his children's lives to spare them from future pain.
Following the shootings, a massive manhunt for Mark O. Barton ensued, bringing the city of Atlanta to a standstill. The search came to a dramatic and violent end at a gas station in Acworth, a suburb northwest of Atlanta. As police closed in, Barton took his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. With the death of the sole suspect, there were no arrests to be made in the murders of Kevin Middleton Dial and the other innocent victims of Barton's rampage. The case was closed, leaving a community to mourn and grapple with the senselessness of the violence that had unfolded.
