CHARLOTTE — Darnell Simms remains hospitalized after police say he exchanged gunfire with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officers Tuesday.
Once he is released from the hospital, Simms will be taken to the Mecklenburg County Detention Center to face multiple charges, including four counts of attempted murder.
CMPD Chief Estella Patterson said officers encountered Simms shortly before noon after his wife called police because she was concerned he was heading to her home with a gun.
According to Patterson, Simms fired a shot at officers, who returned fire and hit him.
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The shooting left neighbors shaken.
One woman who lives near the scene said she heard what sounded like a bullet hit her home and ran for cover.
“I heard what I thought at the time was a bullet hit my house. So, I ran for cover and hid in my bathtub until I didn’t hear any more of what was the shooting,” she said.
After officers cleared her home, they found a bullet had gone through two walls.
“When we discovered that it actually was in my bedroom, it brought a sense of emotion over me just to know that that could have been myself,” she said.
Several homes in the neighborhood were damaged, with bullets hitting siding, garage doors and even a vehicle.
“Life is not promised tomorrow, and bullets really don’t have any names,” a neighbor said.
Court records also show Simms had a previous encounter with police in July after an argument with his wife. According to the report, Simms poured milk on her, and she ran to a neighbor’s home for help.
Simms also has a criminal history. He was convicted in 2017 of four separate pharmacy robberies in Charlotte and served more than three years in prison.
The investigation into the incident remains ongoing.