Police say Tevius Turner was in argument with victim’s cousin
FULL REPORT
The Montgomery County Coroner’s Office confirmed early this morning the victim of a shooting at East North and Spring streets in Springfield has died.
The victim has been identified as 29-year-old Melody Turner, of Springfield, according to the coroner’s office. An autopsy has not yet been performed.
Tevius Turner, 35, was arrested Friday in Kentucky by U.S. Marshals.
Police records filed with the Clark County Municipal Court show Springfield police requested a felonious assault warrant for Turner, who police said shot a woman after becoming involved in an argument with the victim’s cousin.
Police said the woman was found in a car unresponsive and bleeding heavily from her left ear when they arrived to the scene at the intersection of East North and Spring streets.
Police said the victim’s cousin told police he and Turner were involved in an argument regarding money at a Quality Inn in the 300 block of East Leffel Lane.
Shortly thereafter, according to the report, the woman and her cousin left the hotel to cash a check at an East Main Street business when Turner arrived and began arguing with the victim’s cousin inside the store.
Police said the victim and her cousin exited the store, got into a car and prepared to leave before Turner grabbed a pistol from his car parked next to the couple and pointed the gun at the victim’s cousin.
The victim began to back out of the car upon seeing the pistol when Turner fired one shot that hit the victim in the neck or head, the report states. The victim’s cousin then drove the car out of the store’s parking lot and to the intersection of East North and Spring Streets where police responded.
According to the Kentucky State Police, Turner was arrested Friday on a fugitive warrant from the U.S. Marshal’s Service as the result of a traffic stop on southbound I-75 in the area of Williamsburg, Ky.
State police began patrolling the interstate about 4:45 p.m., located the black BMW described by authorities and arrested Turner at 6 p.m., according to a post dispatcher in London, Ky.
Turner is being detained in the Whitley County Detention Center in Williamsburg. His address is listed as Cartersville, Ga.
The shooting comes as the city has faced an increase in violent crime this year.
>>RELATED: As Springfield violence climbs, 2 sides battle different fronts
Calls to police related to weapons jumped 30 percent in the first half of this year from the same time in 2015, according to police data obtained by the Springfield News-Sun. Springfield police responded to 594 calls related to guns or weapons in the first six months of 2016.
>>DETAILS: Violent crime in Springfield at 14-year high
Springfield Mayor Warren Copeland said any shooting is a cause for concern, particularly at a time when he noted the city is considering $1.5 million in budget cuts next year, including potentially taking officers off the street to perform clerical duties.
“This is one reason why the city does not want to take police off the street,” Copeland said Friday afternoon. “This is exactly what we’re afraid of, is we won’t be able to respond to these types of situations. It worries me tremendously connected to our budget.”
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