A mother and daughter were deemed heroes Tuesday after rushing to the aid of an officer shot three times in a police shooting at a west side apartment complex.
The shooting stemmed from a carjacking at the intersection of West 16th and North Harding streets just after 2 p.m.
According to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, an officer recognized the carjacked vehicle and followed it into an apartment complex off of Lafayette Road and West 16th Street to conduct a traffic stop.
Of the four suspects in the vehicle, one immediately fled the scene. As the officer was taking the driver into custody, two other passengers exited the car. One walked to the front of the vehicle and opened fire, hitting the officer at least three times. The officer returned gunfire, hitting the suspect at least once.
One neighbor, Tina Jordan, heard the officer call for help.
Even as gunfire filled the air, Jordan said she didn’t think twice; she and her daughter ran to help, possibly putting their lives at risk.
“We (saw) shots, we ran outside to assist the officer. We didn’t even think about the other person that was shooting. He said he needed help and we went outside to help him,” she said.
She and her daughter brought towels to help stop the bleeding. “We put the towels on his leg that was bleeding until another officer pulled up. We flagged him and he came and took over.”
IMPD says that action could have saved that officer’s life.
For other neighbors, Tuesday’s police shooting has left them feeling uneasy.
Jilletta Holifield lives in the apartment complex and witnessed the incident out her front window.
“It was just like pop, pop, pop, shooting everywhere, and then I looked out my window, because I had to hurry up and get off my call. I see people running, (and) next thing you know there’s a swarm of police.”
Holifield says they had another shooting not even a month ago.
“It’s making my nerves even (worse) because my children are right here, they can see it, and they’re out here, and they can hear it.”
The officer and injured suspect were taken to hospitals for treatment in stable and critical conditions, respectively.
Three of the four suspects, including the shooter, were in custody. The fourth suspect was still at large.
This article was written by WISH-TV’s Cat Sandoval.