Police say shooting in church parking lot near UTC accidental
Police say a bullet grazed a man’s head Saturday morning when his friend accidentally fired a pistol in the parking lot of First Baptist Church on East Eight Street.
The shooting prompted an alert from officials at the nearby University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, warning students of an off-campus shooting.
According to a police news release, the victim said his friend was trying to show him a pistol around 11 a.m. when he accidentally fired it. The bullet caused just a small cut in the back of the victim’s head. Police did not identify the shooter or the victim in the release.
The shooter left the parking lot before officers arrived, with the victim’s permission. Paramedics then drove the victim to a local hospital, and he was later released.
The shooting happened in the parking lot of the church,
located next to UTC’s Guerry Apartments on Mabel Street. At 11:54 a.m., school administrators sent an alert on Twitter, on Facebook and in a text message to students.
“Police are investigating a shooting of a non-student near campus,” the alert read. “Stay indoors. Report suspicious activity to 911.”
As police responded to the site, some people attending a funeral service at the church wandered outside to see what was going on.
At 12:26 p.m., administrators sent another alert, telling students they could resume normal activity because the shooting was an isolated incident.
The department’s neighborhood policing division will follow any actionable leads, a spokesman said in the release.