18-year-old black teenager killed at a Georgia gas station had just passed the army entrance exam

Nationwide — Aniyah Harris, an 18-year-old from Fulton County, Georgia, who had just graduated from high school, was shot and killed at a gas station just hours after passing the Army entrance exam.

Harris, who graduated from high school earlier this year, was with her two friends when they stopped at a Shell gas station at the corner of Old National Highway and Jonesboro Road.

According to police, the driver of her car was attacked by two armed men while she was there. A shootout ensued and Harris was caught in the crossfire.

Her mother, Amidah Hood, is struggling to cope with her loss. She said her daughter had just achieved a major milestone by passing the Army entrance exam earlier that day, but later that same day her dreams were shattered.

“All this senseless killing and her disappearance so unexpectedly didn’t even leave her a chance to achieve anything in life,” Hood told WSBTV.

She described Harris as a sociable and vibrant young woman with big dreams. Hood said her daughter was a friendly person who made friends wherever she went.

“Right now I just miss her and I want her to know that I love her and would do anything for her,” Hood said. “You never wake up and think that this is going to be your story.”

Now Hood relies on memories of her daughter to find the strength to carry on. “She was beautiful and she was robbed, and that’s not fair,” she said.