Philadelphia police

By Jillian Pikora From Daily Voice

A woman was shot by Philadelphia police after she pointed a handgun at officers responding to a gun call on West Erie Avenue, authorities announced in a release issued Sunday, Nov. 30.

The incident began at approximately 4:11 a.m. when officers in the 25th District were dispatched to the 9XX block of West Erie Avenue for a report of a person with a gun, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.

When they arrived, officers found a 35-year-old Hispanic woman holding a firearm to the right side of her head, police said. Officers gave her multiple verbal commands to drop the weapon, but she refused, according to the department.

An officer deployed a Taser, which struck her but had no effect, police said. She then ran across Erie Avenue and pointed the firearm in the direction of the officers, according to investigators.

In response, two 25th District officers fired their duty weapons, shooting her multiple times, police said. She fell to the ground and dropped the firearm. Officers transported her to Temple University Hospital, where she remains in critical condition, according to the release.

Investigators recovered a .22 caliber Kel-Tec handgun with an obliterated serial number at the scene. The firearm was loaded with one round in the chamber and 19 rounds in the magazine, police said.

The woman has been charged with Aggravated Assault on Police and Violations of the Uniform Firearms Act. No officers or civilians were injured. Body-worn cameras were activated during the entire encounter, authorities said.

The investigation is in its preliminary stages and is being reviewed by the PPD’s Officer Involved Shooting Investigation Unit, the Internal Affairs Bureau, and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office.

Per policy, both discharging officers — a 36-year-old male officer with three years of service and a 25-year-old male officer with two years on the force — have been placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of the investigation, police said.