HOUMA, La. — Police were still on hand for after-care program pickup at Saint Francis de Sales School in Houma, after a grandmother was shot out front around 1 p.m. Friday, triggering a school lockdown.
Police said she was waiting to pick up her grandkids when she was approached by 17-year-old Jamanie Dotch. The teenager tried to steal her purse when he shot her in the stomach and ran.
"Around the early part of June or mid-June, he escaped from a juvenile facility in Shreveport. He's from the Houma area. And right now my detectives are obtaining warrants on him for attempted first-degree murder and possession of a firearm in a school zone," said Houma Police Chief Dana Coleman.
The shooting happened in a busy part of town not long before school pickup meaning not only were there witnesses but cameras were rolling.
A surveillance camera captured a photo of the shooter running away. Just hours after it circulated online, they had a name and had a conversation with Jamanie Dotch's family.
"We're trying to bridge gaps between the community and law enforcement and this is how you do it. Yeah, we've got a tragedy that occurred. But still, we're trying to preserve life on all ends," said Houma Police Chief Dana Coleman.
The Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux said no children witnessed the incident – writing in a letter to parents:
"Let us all hold in prayer all those affected by this event, trusting that God will grant to all comfort and reassurance."
The woman who was shot is stable but the extent of her injuries is not known.
Dotch has not yet been arrested.