Posted: Mar 17, 2010 6:31 AM
Updated: Mar 17, 2010 6:31 AM
TUCSO - Two weeks ago, a woman was shot while walking her dog in broad daylight.
The woman, still recovering from shattered bones and a wound on her torso, spoke exclusively to News 4.
Around noon, in the area of Los Reales Road on Tucson's far east ide, the victim was walking her dog.
"Suddenly, I feel this boom," says the victim, who asked not to be identified, because the shooter has not been caught, and she fears for her safety.
"I hear this humungous boom," she says. "I knew immediately I've been shot."
Pima County Sheriff's detectives say she is the victim of a random act of violence. Neighbors say it is a pretty quiet area.
The victim told the sheriff's department she didn't know who shot her or where the shot even came from. She just felt a sharp pain in her side and went down.
"Was it accidental?" she asks. "Was I, in fact, targeted? Was it a stray bullet? Was it someone out there just shooting at human beings? I have no idea."
What she does know is that after being shot, a number of things went through her mind.
"As I lay there, I thought to myself, ‘This isn't happening. This is not happening. This only happens in the movies,'" she says. "I'm your average mom minding my own business and it was surreal."
She couldn't feel her fingers or her hand. That's where the bullet went through and shattered bones. It also hit her torso.
Her doctors told her that, "if it had been an inch to the right or left, I could've been crippled, organ-damaged, brain-dead - I could've been killed."
She believes she had an angel watching over her.
"This was not luck," she says. "This was the hand of God that was protecting me."
Pima County Sheriff's deputies rolled in with ATV's looking for evidence.
"Detectives have few leads in this case," said Pima County Sheriff's Deputy Dawn Barkman. "What we're hoping - someone comes forth and gives us information."
The victim tells us she is on the road to recovery physically, but mentally, it will take some time. She's so thankful to her family and her friends for their love, support and prayers.
The victim tells News 4 that the person who shot her needs to be held accountable for their actions. She says they can do the right thing by turning themselves in to the Pima County Sheriff's Department.
Anyone with information is urged to call 9-1-1 or 88-CRIME.
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