Gary woman charged after shooting gun during road rage incident
A 36-year-old Gary woman faces multiple charges following a road rage incident near a Gary gas station.
Shana Joshua has been charged with attempt to commit a battery by means of a deadly weapon, a Level 5 felony; criminal recklessness committed with a deadly weapon, intimidation, and pointing a firearm at another, which are Level 6 felonies; and misdemeanor resisting law enforcement, according to court records.
Gary police officers responded to a call of criminal recklessness near 35th Avenue and Malcolm X Drive at 3:11 p.m. May 15, according to the probable cause affidavit.
When officers arrived, they spoke with a man who told them he pulled out of the nearby gas station and stopped at the intersection of 35th Avenue and Malcolm X Drive. At the intersection, Joshua pulled up to the driver’s side of his vehicle and yelled an expletive at him and that “you seen me” and “you cut me off,” according to the probable cause affidavit.
The man told officers that he exchanged words until he continued driving. Joshua sped after him and he told police he was worried she was attempting to crash into his car, the affidavit states.
As she followed him, Joshua then lowered the driver’s side window, took out a handgun and started shooting at the man’s Chevrolet Tahoe as they drove northbound on Delaware Street.
The man told police he ducked so he would not get hit and floored the gas pedal, court records state. At one point during the chase, Joshua went around a school bus and fired more shots at him.
The man got out of his vehicle and started recording Joshua in an attempt to get footage of the license plate, records state.
As the man was talking to officers at the gas station, Joshua arrived on scene and started yelling profanity. Officers approached Joshua and were able to secure her gun from the passenger seat of her car, according to court records.
As officers tried to detain Joshua, she began to pull away from officers, so officers detained her to the ground. While on the ground, a struggle continued as officers tried to handcuff her, so an officer deployed a taser, the affidavit states.
Joshua was then handcuffed, taken to the police station and booked without incident. The gun she used was dropped into property at the police station, according to court records.
Joshua is being held in jail on a $50,000 bond, and her next hearing is May 29.
