1 woman dead, 1 injured in double shooting

Someone opened fire shortly after noon Friday at a home near North Watkins, critically injuring a man and a woman, police said. The two victims were taken to the Regional Medical Center, and the woman died of her injuries.

The shooting happened about 12:02 p.m. in the 1300 block of Snowden, the police department posted on Twitter. The address near the north end of Midtown and the edge of North Memphis.

Both victims are in their 20s, police spokesman Officer Louis C. Brownlee wrote in an email.

Police had blocked off the intersection of Snowden and Watkins as they investigated the shooting. Though police had initially said both victims were taken to a hospital, the woman’s family members said her body was still on the porch of a home.

More family members were arriving at the scene and began sobbing when they heard the news.

The victim who died is 22-year-old Lillian Cole, said her aunt, Tasha Collier.

“She was a nice young lady and somebody did this to her,” she said through tears. She said her niece had graduated from Whitehaven High School.

The family members said she died at the house where she and her boyfriend lived. They said her boyfriend was the other person shot.

The police department released only a general description of the suspect: male, wearing a white shirt and black pants.

The shooting took place about half a mile north of Crosstown Concourse, the remodeled Sears building that serves as a mixed-use space for living, shopping and working. Some of the city’s leading organizations have established a presence there, including Church Health, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, Memphis Teacher Residency and many others.

Reach reporter Daniel Connolly at 529-5296 or daniel.connolly@commercia lappeal.com.

Daniel Connolly and Yolanda Jones