Family identifies grandmother injured in Lowndes County shooting

LOWNDES COUNTY (WTVA) - A family is looking for answers after their relative was shot in a reported drive-by in Lowndes County on Friday night.

Loved ones identify the victim as 58-year-old Sonya Johnson. “My grandma was yelling,” recalls Camron Johnson, the victim’s 14-year-old grandson. “When I ran up in here I saw her on the floor, blood.”

The teenager tells WTVA he immediatley dialed 911 and then his mother.

“I was confused,” Johnson said. “I didn’t know what happened, I didn’t know who did it, but somebody did it.”

An in-law who lives near to the family says he got word of the shooting from his brother.

“She’s talking and asking why it happened,” said Pierre Ross Sr. of the victim. “We don’t have a clue why it happened.”

The family says the victim was shot in the chest and that the bullet exited through her back. She is recovering in the ICU with three broken ribs and punctured lung.

“Ms. Sonya is the nicest person you could ever meet,” Ross said. “Everybody calls her “Nanna,” that’s everybody’s grandma.”

The family says it’s a miracle Johnson is okay, but they’re at a loss as to why the shooting happened in first place.

“I just want to know who did it. Whoever did it, they were wrong for that, they were.”

No person of interest or suspect has been named. This is an ongoing investigation.

MOSS POINT (AP) — History remembers firsts. History remembers movements, mostly, the prominent faces of a movement. Rarely, does history lend credence to those behind the scenes, keeping things together.

Sharon Caples McDougle played a significant role in an important and an iconic moment in history and didn’t feel the need to tell her story — until now.

On September 22, 1992, Dr. Mae Jemison was the first African American female to set foot into space for the historic mission STS-47 aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor. Because the space suits were specifically for men, they were typically heavier and for a woman, would require assistance putting the suit on.

Who was it to help Jemison get into her space suit — an adventurous girl from Moss Point, last name McDougle.

McDougle said after seeing the movie, Hidden Figures, friends told her that she should tell her story, although she felt many people had already known about her efforts.

As a 1982 graduate of Moss Point High School, McDougle said she initially envisioned her career would be working with children.

“As a little girl, I thought I would be doing something with children — maybe like a Kindergarten teacher,” she said. “Around junior high, I figured I would be good at that because I had taken care of my nieces and nephews at that time.”

Near her junior and senior year of high school, McDougle said she considered being a flight attendant after visiting and staying with her sister for a while in Portland, Oregon. McDougle’s love for traveling and seeing the world came true, but in a different form.

“The Air Force recruiter showed up at the high school and I was like, `that’s my ticket out of Moss Point right there’’’, she laughed. “After I turned 18 that February, I signed up and once I graduated high school, I was out of here,” she said.

As only life can, adversity struck in McDougle’s life. After the death of her parents when she was seven, McDougle credited her teachers for providing her with the affection she needed.

“My oldest sister was 23 at that time so she was still young too and I had to realize that I wasn’t the only one grieving because she was too, so the teachers really stepped in and helped me to feel good about myself,” said McDougle.

Hugs, goodwill, and playing outside in her neighborhood are things McDougle credits for sustaining her through the bad times growing up in the River City.

After seven years and five months in the Air Force, McDougle said an issue in her unit, not the force in its entirety caused her to seek an “early out” because she did not want to be unhappy. After getting out in 1990, McDougle betted on herself and took a leap of faith.

“It was a little scary because I went into the force right out of high school,” McDougle said. “Even though I was in the Air Force, the skills I had did not translate into a normal job,” McDougle said.

Odd jobs such as cleaning offices and placing stickers on clothing for about five months in California kept her afloat, until one of her Air Force buddies called

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