Two Philadelphia police officers shot a woman who allegedly pointed a gun at them early Sunday morning in the Hunting Park neighborhood, law enforcement officials said.
The 35-year-old woman, who sustained multiple gunshot wounds, was taken to Temple University Hospital in critical condition, according to the PPD.
Authorities said the officers were called just before 4:15 a.m. to the 900 block of W. Erie Avenue for a report of a person with a gun. There, they found the woman holding a firearm up to her head, police said.
The officers ordered her to drop the weapon, and, when she refused, one of them deployed a taser, which did not have an effect on the woman, according to a PPD account provided later Sunday morning.
She then crossed Erie Avenue and turned the gun toward police, and two officers opened fire, law enforcement said. No one else was injured in the exchange.
Investigators recovered a loaded .22 caliber handgun with a destroyed serial number at the scene, the PPD stated. The woman, who has not yet been publicly identified, is being charged with aggravated assault on police and firearm violations, authorities added.
The officers’ body-worn cameras were activated during the incident, which is currently being investigated by the District Attorney’s Office and the PPD, officials said. Both officers were placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of those probes, in accordance with the department’s policies around officer-involved shootings.
