Verbal sparring at a busy downtown Minneapolis intersection turned violent during the evening commute when an unarmed woman was shot and critically wounded by a woman who fled in a getaway car before surrendering a few hours later, according to charges filed Friday.
Perishea L. Young, 23, of West St. Paul, was charged in Hennepin County District Court with second-degree intentional attempted murder and first-degree assault in connection with the shooting about 5:45 p.m. Wednesday at 9th Street and the Nicollet Mall.
Young remains jailed in lieu of $250,000 bail ahead of a court appearance Monday. Court records do not list an attorney for her.
The woman who was shot was in critical condition Friday at HCMC "after suffering multiple internal injuries and undergoing numerous surgeries," the charges read. Officials have not released her identity.
The intersection of 9th and Nicollet has been a problem spot for police and in particular the Target store, whose two-story main entrance looms over the north street corner. In an effort to improve safety just outside its doors, Target has moved its closing time from 9 p.m. to 6 p.m., closed its liquor store and enhanced its security presence.
"Along with other businesses," read a statement in late June from Target, "we've seen a rise in disruptive activity around our downtown Minneapolis store over the past few years, and as a result, we've added more security team members, changed our store operating hours and installed additional security features."
According to the criminal complaint:
Officers dispatched to the intersection on a report of gunfire arrived and saw a large crowd around a woman who was gasping for air and suffering from a wound to her lower chest.
Various surveillance videos showed the victim and Young in a verbal confrontation.
Young drew a gun from her purse, took several steps toward the other woman and shot her at close range.
The victim is "unarmed and at no point did she advance upon" Young, the complaint read.
Young ran and dropped the gun. A third female picked up the gun and tossed it into a car. Young got in the car and fled.
About 3½ hours later, Young turned herself in at the Minneapolis Police Department and gave up the gun.
Young at first told police that she shot the woman in self-defense, contending that the woman reached into her purse and had something in her hands.
But when police disclosed that the video showed otherwise, Young admitted that she is " 'quick to fight,' " the complaint quoted as her as saying. Young explained that the woman spat in her direction as they argued.
