Bad blood between two women erupted into a fistfight, followed by a shooting into an occupied sport-utility vehicle in a west Erie neighbourhood on the afternoon of April 15, according to a criminal complaint filed against the alleged shooter.
Tyonia M. Lucas, 30, was charged on April 16 with three counts of attempted homicide and multiple counts of aggravated assault in connection with the shooting that occurred soon after 3 p.m. April 15 in the 600 block of West 17th Street. Bond was set at $75,000, according to court filings.
Lucas’ lawyer was not listed on her criminal docket record.
Lucas is accused by Erie police of shooting rounds at a Ford Explorer, shattering the back window while two adults and a 6-year-old youngster were inside. There were no reported injuries from the shooting.
Erie police claimed they learnt about the shooting from the city’s ShotSpotter gunfire monitoring system. Officers who responded to the shooting discovered six spent.380-caliber shell casings and a.380-caliber gun in the 600 block of West 17th Street, as well as the damaged vehicle near West 17th and Cherry streets, according to the criminal complaint against Lucas.
Investigators stated in the complaint’s affidavit that a witness described being with Lucas on April 15 before receiving a call from another woman asking for a ride. According to the affidavit, the witness was worried since Lucas and the other lady had a history together, but Lucas assured her that everything was fine and that the woman and her son would be picked up.
Lucas was reportedly yelling at the other woman during the ride, and when they arrived at the 600 block of West 17th Street, Lucas allegedly attempted to hit her. According to the affidavit, the two then got out of the vehicle and got into a fight, leaving Lucas with a bleeding lip.
According to the witness, Lucas then indicated that she was going into a house to obtain a gun, and she was seen coming out of the house holding a gun and pointing it at the others. According to the affidavit, the witness stated that she began driving away after hearing numerous rounds fired and her back glass blasted out.
Lucas is tentatively scheduled to appear in court for her preliminary hearing on April 21, according to court records.
