Charges filed against suspect in officer-involved shooting
A Memphis woman is facing several charges, including attempted first degree murder, following an officer-involved shooting that took place on Summer Avenue on April 20.
Rhonda Rawls, 37, allegedly fired on a Memphis police officer during a traffic stop on April 20, according to an affidavit for her arrest.
According to that affidavit, Rawls was driving a silver and green Infiniti when she was pulled over by an officer, named in the affidavit as R. Schmidt.
After Rawls pulled over in a parking lot at 4394 Summer Ave., Schmidt approached the driver’s side of the vehicle. Rawls, the affidavit states, was in the driver’s seat when she stuck a semiautomatic handgun outside of her window and fired three shots at Schmidt.
Schmidt returned fire, and the Infiniti sped away from the officer heading east on Summer Avenue. The officer was not injured.
Following the shooting, Rawls was located by police at Regional One Hospital, where she was in critical condition as she was being treated for a gunshot wound to the left side of her body.
A witness to the shooting who said she was the owner of the Infiniti and was riding in the passenger seat when the shooting occurred was with Rawls at Regional One.
She was questioned by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation after Shelby County Dist. Atty. Gen. Amy Weirich requested they investigate the shooting.
Agents with TBI also found a handgun on the parking lot pavement at the scene of the shooting.
The affidavit states the incident was captured on both a body-worn camera and Schmidt’s in-car camera.