Neighbor of slain teen: ‘You never think something like that would happen’

The neighbor of the 17-year-old Early College student dually enrolled at Columbus State University who was killed late Monday said the teen was known for her sweet personality.

“She was a beautiful person inside and out,” said Cobe Johnson, who lives at Bull Creek Apartments across from the residence where Destiny Nelson was shot. “You never really saw her mad. When she got mad, it wasn’t even for that long. It would be a quick second, and she’d go back to laughing.”

Johnson, whose mother used to babysit Nelson and her older sister, said the teen was visiting her and her family Monday night. She said the student left her apartment around 9 p.m. before heading home to 11 B Creek Way, which is near Woodruff Farm Road.

Johnson said she was still in her home when she heard a knock at her neighbor’s door followed by gunshots around 10:40 p.m. that sounded like firecrackers. She said they dropped to the floor, and first responders were on the scene about five minutes later.

She struggled to find the words to describe what she saw next. She said seeing the teen wounded with multiple gunshot wounds in her stomach was a tragedy she didn’t expect to witness.

She said the girl was still conscious and talking immediately after the incident.

“It’s no way you can explain it,” the next-door neighbor said. “You never think something like that would happen.”

Nelson was transported to Columbus Midtown Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 11:53 p.m. Her body was sent to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation crime lab in Atlanta for an autopsy, Muscogee County Deputy Coroner Charles Newton confirmed.

Johnson, whose child would often times play with Nelson, said the teen was loved by many at Bull Creek Apartments, especially the children.

“If she was standing out here, all the kids would be out here surrounding her,” Johnson said in the breezeway outside of her home. “She was just a lovable person.”

No one has been arrested in connection with the shooting.

Nelson’s death marks the second homicide in Columbus this year. It comes nearly two weeks after Dominique Devonte Horton was shot killed Jan. 5 on 32nd Avenue after a large group of people met there to watch two female juveniles fight.

Anyone with information about the Monday’s shooting is encouraged to call Cpl. Alan Malone at 706-225-4293 or email him at amalone@columbusga.org.

This story was originally published January 17, 2017 at 2:22 PM with the headline "Neighbor of slain teen: ‘You never think something like that would happen’."