Officer shoots woman who allegedly fired gun in Gastonia Walmart parking lot

GASTONIA, N.C. — A woman accused of firing gunshots in the parking lot of a Gastonia Walmart was shot by a police officer, authorities say.

Gastonia police said the whole thing started Thursday morning with a car crash into a tree and a good Samaritan offering help. It quickly escalated to gunfire after that.

Around 6:45 a.m. that day, police were told a woman had wrecked her car in the parking lot of the Franklin Square Shopping Center. It’s located along East Franklin Boulevard.

Police said the woman first crashed into a tree in the median of the parking lot. They said that’s when a man stopped to help her and she started shooting.

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Woman shot by police in Walmart parking lot A woman accused of firing gunshots in the parking lot of a Gastonia Walmart was shot by a police officer, authorities say. Gastonia police said the whole thing started Thursday morning with a car crash into a tree and a good Samaritan offering help. It quickly escalated to gunfire after that.

She was still shooting when a Gastonia police officer responding to the crash arrived at the scene, police said.

The officer shot the woman once. Police said she wasn’t seriously hurt.

“She is expected to survive. It seems like a minor injury,” Gastonia Chief Trent Conard said.

Macie Hay got video of the incident on her cellphone. She said she was on East Franklin Boulevard Thursday morning to return something to Walmart with her boyfriend. She started videoing the scene moments after she heard gunshots.

“We pulled up and parked,” she said. “As soon as we were getting out of the car, we heard three shots and I heard somebody scream.”

She said the woman started shooting at the man trying to help her, then ran and started shooting all over. Channel 9′s Eli Brand could see a bullet hole going through the front windshield of her car, a Nissan. As many as 16 evidence markers were laid across the parking lot.

Investigators said they have no idea why the woman started shooting, but did say she had three children in the car with her. The kids, a 1-year-old boy, a 7-year-old boy, and a 10-year-old girl, are OK. However, police said the baby was taken to the hospital for breathing issues as a precautionary measure.

Hay said the experience was too much to handle on a Thursday morning.

“I was like what the heck? 7 o’ clock in the morning, going to Walmart to return something and somebody starts shooting out of nowhere,” she said.

The Gastonia Police Department said the State Bureau of Investigation will be leading the investigation moving forward. The officer who fired the shot is on paid administrative leave while the investigation continues., which happens every time an officer fires their gun.

This is a developing story; check wsoctv.com for updates.

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