Woman shot by Metro police officer still critical
A woman shot by a Las Vegas police officer Monday remains in critical condition and faces a charge of attempted murder, according to police.
The woman was in University Medical Center on Tuesday undergoing treatment for a bullet wound in her upper torso, officials said.
Police did not respond to repeated attempts by the Review-Journal to identify the woman.
The name of the officer who fired the shot will not be released until today, in accordance with Metro policy. The identities of officers involved in shootings are withheld by the department for 48 hours.
The uniformed police officer suffered leg and hip injuries after being hit by a car the woman was driving, said Lt. Charles Davidaitis, Metro’s spokesman. The officer was treated at the medical center and released, hospital officials said.
According to police, the shooting occurred at 9:20 p.m. Monday in downtown Las Vegas.
Two officers had been called to the Out of State Check Cashing service at 511 E. Fremont St. to investigate two people suspected of passing bad checks.
As the officers questioned the two people, a woman walked in and tried to cash a check, police said. The manager, however, hesitated, suspecting the check was stolen, police said.
The woman then started to leave the office and the manager shouted to police that she had tried to pass a stolen check, police said. One of the officers ran outside and saw the woman get into the driver’s side of a blue compact car with a person in the passenger seat.
The officer then yelled for the woman to stop, but witnesses told police the woman drove the car toward the officer, hit him and knocked him to the pavement.
The officer shot at the woman after he had been struck by the car, police said.
Police officers at the scene sent for emergency vehicles to take the officer and the woman to the hospital.
One of the people inside the check-cashing business tried to flee during the shooting but was caught and arrested by police. Officers also arrested two others during the incident. Police would not identify the three people.
