A “role model” cheerleader born with only one lung has had part of her spleen removed after being shot in another apparent case of somebody being shot for being in the wrong place in the US.
Payton Washington, 18, was shot in the leg and back in a supermarket car park in Texas on Monday while her teammate Heather Roth was also hurt in the same incident, the team’s owner Lynne Shearer said.
The high school students were on their way home from practice, Ms Shearer, who owns Woodlands Elite Cheer, told TV station KXAN of nearby Austin.
Ms Roth accidentally tried to get into the wrong car, Ms Shearer said. That’s when, she added, a “guy got out and they saw that he had a gun.
“And so they tried to speed off and he shot his gun, like five times or so into the car.”
Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr, 25, was arrested on suspicion of being involved in deadly conduct, and could be jailed for up to 10 years if convicted.
Elgin police said in a statement: “Information suggests that an altercation occurred in the parking lot, and multiple shots were fired into a vehicle.”
