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Phoenix Police Shoot Armed Woman in Maryvale; DPS Investigating
Two Phoenix officers fired at a woman holding a handgun near 75th Avenue and Sells Drive on Wednesday night, sending her to the hospital and shutting down part of Maryvale. The Arizona Department of Public Safety's Major Incident Division is now investigating the 42nd officer-involved shooting in Maricopa County this year.
PHOENIX â A woman was hospitalized after two Phoenix police officers shot her during a response in the Maryvale neighborhood Wednesday night, authorities said, in what has become the 42nd officer-involved shooting in Maricopa County this year.
Officers were called to the area of 75th Avenue and Sells Drive, north of Indian School Road, around 7:15 p.m., according to Phoenix Police Sgt. Chris Berrelleza. When they arrived, they found a woman armed with a handgun, he said.
The shooting occurred after officers made contact with her, Berrelleza said. Two officers fired their weapons, and the woman was taken to a hospital for treatment of gunshot injuries. No officers were injured.
A large police presence shut down part of the west Phoenix community, with crime tape stretched across the street and patrol cars blocking access. Berrelleza said the area would remain restricted for an extended period.
Video recorded by a neighbor and shared with local media captured officers ordering the woman to drop her weapon before shots ring out.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety's Major Incident Division will investigate the circumstances that led to the shooting, a standard practice for outside review of police use of force in the region.
The shooting marks the 72nd officer-involved incident statewide this year, according to a tally cited in the aftermath. The county's pace of such incidents has drawn sustained attention from community advocates and oversight officials who have pressed for more transparency in how use-of-force cases are reviewed and how quickly body-camera footage is released.
Maryvale, a predominantly Latino community in west Phoenix, has seen repeated police activity in recent years, and neighborhood leaders have called for clearer public communication when incidents shut down residential streets.
Police have not released the woman's name, age or current condition, and it was not immediately clear what prompted the initial 911 call or whether a weapon was recovered at the scene. Berrelleza did not say how many shots were fired or whether the woman pointed the handgun at officers.
DPS has not indicated when its investigation will be complete or whether any findings will be made public before the case is forwarded to prosecutors for review.