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Woman shot in leg in Davenport

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By Thomas Geyer | Thursday, January 17, 2008 8:20 AM CST | () comments

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UPDATED: A 20-year-old woman standing in a Davenport church parking lot suffered what police are calling non-life-threatening gunshot wounds Wednesday night during what may be a drive-by shooting, Davenport Police Capt. David Struckman said.

Davenport Police Sgt. Mike Colclasure said the shooting occurred at 7:16 p.m. outside the Pentecostal Church of God, 1234 N. Ripley St. and happened while worshipers were attending Wednesday night services.

Struckman said that witnesess indicated shots were fired from a car that was driving southbound on Scott Street. He added that three persons of interest are being interviewed at the Davenport Police Station.

Colclasure said the woman did not appear to be connected with the church and that it appears to be just random chance that it happened there.

He added that the woman’s wound or wounds, although serious by nature because they were caused by gunfire, did not appear to be life-threatening. She was taken to Genesis Medical Center-East Rusholme Street, for treatment. Her condition was not available late Wednesday.

Police found several empty shell casings and live rounds from a small-caliber weapon lying in the roadway in the 1300 block of Scott Street, where the car allegedly was located when the shots were fired.

Witness statements and a quick assessment of the casings indicate the assailant may have fired between three and five shots, Colclasure said.

The possibility of the incident being street gang-related is being investigated, mainly because several witnesses claimed they may have heard gang-related language, he added.

Elder Bernard Fox of the Pentecostal Church of God was shocked that such an event would happen on church property.

“This person committed a crime on God’s grounds,” Fox said.

Pointing to a blood stain that marked where the victim lay before being taken away, Fox said, “There should be no blood spilled on these grounds.

“We’re inside God’s house praising and worshipping the Lord and this is going on outside,” he added, shaking his head both in disbelief at what occurred and at the route some people have taken with their lives.

“Some of these younger people, they have no scruples, no morals, no goals,” he said.

Fox said that the parents of today’s youth need to get a handle on their kids and the neighborhoods need to have captains that meet and work to prevent such violence and keep an eye on the kids to make sure they stay on the road to a successful life.

Thomas Geyer can be contacted at (563) 383-2329 or tgeyer@qctimes.com.