‘LIVING IN FEAR’
NIGHT OF RAGE ENDS WITH WIFE WOUNDED, HUSBAND DEAD:
UPPER CHICHESTER » A 40-year-old township woman is recovering after being shot four times by her husband in a display of domestic violence that played out before their three children — and ended with the husband taking his own life in Southwest Philadelphia as he was fleeing police early Wednesday.
Wednesday night, Upper Chichester Police Detective John Montgomery identified the deceased husband as 41-year-old Gilbert A. Snowden.
According to Montgomery, there was an active protection from abuse order against Snowden, and township police had been at the residence that the couple was renting in the 1600 block of Meetinghouse Road on prior occasions for domestic disturbances. Snowden’s criminal history includes a felony conviction that prohibits him from possessing a firearm, the detective said.
Despite the PFA, the husband was inside the single-family property early Wednesday — not because he was wanted there but because his wife apparently felt threatened by him, Montgomery said in the early stages of the investigation Wednesday morning.
“It appears she was living in fear,” Montgomery said.
It was at 12:18 a.m. Wednesday that township police were dispatched to a report of person shot. The wounded mother fled the house to nearby Boothwyn Fire Co., where she collapsed after knocking on the door for help.
“It’s pretty amazing that she was able to make it there,” Montgomery said, noting her injuries included wounds in the hip, stomach and shoulder.
Citing the initial investigation, Montgomery said the couple’s 19-year-old son arrived home and found his father’s BMW parked on Meetinghouse Road. The son parked in the driveway. Montgomery was unsure of the time, but said it was probably between 11:30 p.m. and midnight.
“The dad is there and it is uncomfortable,” Montgomery said. “At some point, the dad suggested to the 19-year-old that he take the other two kids out for something to eat.
“The 19-year-old reluctantly begins to do that,” Montgomery said, noting that he was in the driveway with his younger brothers, ages 16 and 10. Feeling that something was wrong, the older brother put his siblings in his car and then returned inside the house.
“He is at the back of the house, at the rear door, and the shooting begins,” Montgomery said.
Investigators believe the mother was shot twice while still inside the house, and was shot the additional times as she was fleeing.
“She was fleeing out the front door with him firing at her,” Montgomery said, referring to her husband.
By this point, according to Montgomery, the 19-yearold brother got his siblings out of the car, and they all ran to the firehouse.
“Mom exited the front door, with her husband still firing at her,” Montgomery said, noting that one of the bullets hit the occupied home of a neighbor, but no one was injured.
The armed husband was outside on the sidewalk when he fired again at his wife. He then fled the scene in his BMW.
“At this point, the mom and the three kids are at the firehouse. The medics treat the mother and then take her to Crozer,” Montgomery said, referring to CrozerChester Medical Center.
As part of the investigation, Trainer Police Officer Mike Musso located the BMW at the rest stop on I-95 in Lower Chichester. Authorities believe Snowden saw the police because he fled north on I-95, leading police on a chase, with multiple agencies now providing assistance.
The pursuit ended just before the Platt Bridge in Southwest Philadelphia, where the BMW and a Ridley Park police vehicle collided. The BMW then hit a barrier and came to a rest.
When authorities approached the vehicle they found Snowden with a gunshot wound to the head. It was not immediately known if the self-inflicted wound occurred before or after the crash. Snowden was taken to Penn Presbyterian Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
His gun was recovered, Montgomery said.
By mid-morning Wednesday, Montgomery said the township mother was listed in stable condition at Crozer and was talking to detectives.
All unharmed, he said the two younger children were staying with a relative, while the 19-year-old was with his mom at the hospital.
Ridley Park Police Chief Robert Frazier said his officer was not injured in the incident, and the borough vehicle did not sustain any major damages. It was not immediately clear if his officer hit the BMW, or if the BMW hit the Ridley Park police vehicle, Frazier said Wednesday night.
According to online court records, Snowden had an active case involving an arrest for contempt for violation of a PFA on Feb. 26. He was awaiting a contempt hearing.
The pursuit ended just before the Platt Bridge in Southwest Philadelphia, where the BMW and a Ridley Park police vehicle collided. The BMW then hit a barrier and came to a rest.