Nephew: Woman, 93, fired shots before being killed

Protesters chant during a rally outside the Hearne, Texas police department Thursday, May 8, 2014, following the Tuesday shooting of 93-year-old woman. Robertson County District Attorney Coty Siegert said Pearlie Golden was shot Tuesday night by Officer Stephen Stem. Stem was responding to a 911 call about a disturbance involving a woman with a gun. The Hearne Police Department says Golden “brandished a firearm” when Stem encountered her. He then shot her multiple times. The investigation into the shooting is being handled by the Texas Rangers. AP

HEARNE, Texas–The nephew of a 93-year-old Texas woman who was shot and killed by a police officer says his aunt fired two shots before the officer shot her.

Roy Jones told KBTX-TV for a story aired Friday that he had taken his aunt Pearlie Golden to renew her driver’s license Tuesday, but she was denied after failing her test.

As Jones took his aunt back to her home, he could tell she was upset, he said.

Jones said he later was sitting with his aunt on her front porch when Golden demanded her keys back. He refused, so Golden went into the house and got her .38-caliber handgun. Jones ran into the house and called police, he told the station.

Hearne police have said in a statement that Golden “brandished a gun” when officer Stephen Stem arrived. A preliminary autopsy shows Golden was shot twice and grazed by a third bullet, Robertson County District Attorney Coty Siegert has said.

Hearne police have declined to comment beyond the statement issued this week. Stem has been placed on administrative leave, and The Texas Rangers are investigating the shooting.

Siegert told the station that because the case is still under investigation, he could neither confirm nor deny that Golden fired her gun.

Dozens of protesters marched to police headquarters on Thursday and were met there by Mayor Ruben Gomez, who said he will recommend that Stem be fired during Saturday’s City Council meeting.

“It’s a loss of confidence in the community. We can’t have an officer the citizens have lost confidence in,” Gomez said.

However, Stem’s attorney, Robert McCabe, told the station that he believes his client’s actions were justified under the circumstances and called the mayor’s comments inappropriate and unprofessional.

“He probably knows less facts about what occurred than I do,” McCabe said.

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