17-year-old killed in road rage shooting while on trip with friends, Texas family says
A teenage driver was killed in a suspected road rage shooting on a Texas highway, authorities said.
Louise Jean Wilson, 17, was on a getaway to Galveston with her friends when the incident occurred, her family told Houston’s KRIV.
Houston police responded to a report of a shooting on Interstate 45 just after 1 a.m. Dec. 10, Houston Police Commander Jonathan Halliday said during a news conference recorded by KHOU.
When they arrived, they found a vehicle damaged from gunfire and a female victim, now identified as Wilson, dead at the scene, police said.
Two passengers were also at the scene, Halliday said. One male passenger was transported to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the shoulder and the other was unharmed.
Preliminary investigations reveal the incident may have occurred after Wilson cut off the suspected vehicle in an attempt to avoid another vehicle, police told KTRK.
“After she cut him off, he drove up next to her and discharged his weapon into her vehicle, striking her, and then he fled the scene,” Halliday said.
In a GoFundMe set up by Wilson’s uncle Leo Amoling, the teen was described as “a caring and gentle soul with a lovely personality that could light up a room. Her life had far reaching impacts that only now we are able to comprehend.”
Police said the accused shooter was driving a black four-door sedan.
The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to contact Houston Police Department Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or speak anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 713-222-8477.
This story was originally published December 12, 2023 at 10:19 AM with the headline "17-year-old killed in road rage shooting while on trip with friends, Texas family says."
