A police officer shot down a mother in Georgia who waved a gun when students began fighting after school.
A statement released by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation revealed how Atlanta Police were called to Booker T. Washington High School at 4:17 p.m. on Wednesday with reports of several students fighting after school.
Following a “physical altercation between students during dismissal, a parent came to the campus with a weapon and began waving it in the direction of students, employees, and an Atlanta Public Schools Police Officer,” said the release by Atlanta Public Schools, reports to PEOPLE.
At that point, the officer “ordered the parent to drop the weapon” but “when the parent did not comply with the order, the officer fired one shot, which struck the parent in the hand.” The woman, later identified as 30-year-old Tierra Vachon, was given medical attention at the scene before being taken to the Grady Memorial Hospital where she was treated for a non-life-threatening injury. She is now in stable condition.
Meanwhile, the woman’s family members told WSB-TV that she went to school to defend her daughter and that she had pulled out the gun in self-defense. One woman – who did not wish to be identified but shared that she was the parent of one of the girls involved in the quarrel – told Channel 2 investigative reporter Ashli Lincoln how the altercation began.
“Some girls came over and jumped my girls, that’s how everything started. They were fighting in my yard, jumping my children,” she shared. However, the sister of the woman, Vachon, who was shot said, “They got fighting right in front of the house, the mother told my sister that she was going to shoot my niece.”
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation noted that Vachon was the only one who had been injured in the due course of the incident. “APS Police is conducting a full investigation of the incident, and the parent faces several charges,” explained the district.
Vachon was charged with six offenses by Atlanta Public Schools, including, carrying/possession of firearm on school property, obstructing a law enforcement officer with violence, contributing to delinquency of a minor, and aggravated assault.
The officer who used force, in this case, is also being investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, revealed a spokesperson for the Bureau. “As this was an officer-involved shooting, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating as well,” continued the district. “The safety and well-being of our students and employees is always a top priority for all Atlanta Public Schools.”
