Apartment Shooting Leads To 2 Crashes In West Concord

CONCORD, NH — It was a wild night and morning in West Concord as police investigated a shooting inside an apartment, a crash involving people fleeing from the apartment, and an accused drunken driver who crashed into a police cruiser while officers were investigating the first crash.

Around 11:15 p.m. Saturday, Concord police and firefighters were sent to intersection of Fisherville Road, Sewalls Fall Road, and North State Street for a report of a single-vehicle accident. The first arriving firefighters reported a black Chevrolet had major damage after striking a tree and sign. The vehicle, which had multiple passengers, was right-size-up but all its airbags were deployed as if it had rolled, according to a firefighter. A second ambulance was also called a few minutes later.

A few minutes after that though, firefighters discovered a second vehicle with damage — a white Honda Accord, not far from the first vehicle.

Police dispatch, at the same time, told Concord officers heading to the scene that 911 had just received a call from a man who told them he has just bought a handgun and accidentally shot himself and a friend inside an apartment on Bog Road, and he was driving himself to the hospital.

"I have no idea if this is all connected," the dispatcher said.

Witnesses from Bog Road reported hearing a single gunshot and multiple vehicles fleeing the apartment building and police realized the cases were, in fact, connected.

Police dispatch took another 911 call from the driver of an SUV who reported having a gunshot victim who was bleeding inside the vehicle and they were heading to the hospital. Officers caught up to the SUV at North State and Rumford streets and followed it to Concord Hospital while other officers were sent to the apartment to secure the building and investigate the shooting.

After speaking to witnesses, police learned multiple people were in the vehicle that rolled but there were passengers unaccounted for. Witnesses reported an SUV took a person who was shot from the crash scene and later, an officer told dispatch they believed five people, including a juvenile, were all involved with the Chevrolet that crashed and the SUV.

When officers arrived at the Pinewood Village apartment complex on Bog Road, they reported seeing the doors of the building and apartment open and investigated the scene.

"Definitely going to be where the shooting occurred," the first arriving officer said. "There's blood in the apartment. I don't see a gun on first walk."

Police later learned the gun was with another person, possibly in another apartment, and officers were attempting to find that person, according to scanner chatter. Officers cleared from the apartment many hours later after taking pictures and swabs of blood for detectives to investigate later.

At the hospital, a gunshot victim said the incident was "an accidental gun drop" — the man told the officer he dropped the gun and it went off, according to scanner chatter. Police later reported that a bullet was lodged in the back of a man, he had internal organ damage, and was heading into the operating room.

Back on North State Street, at just before 2 a.m. Sunday, another accident occurred, according to police and witnesses. A woman driving a Toyota Corolla rear ended a police cruiser providing traffic control for the first accident.

After field sobriety tests, that driver, Jennifer Gross, 38, of Piscataqua Road in Concord, was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated. She was taken into protective custody and transported to Concord Hospital.

The Chevrolet was seized and towed to police headquarters. There were traffic delays in the area for around six hours.

Concord Police Department Watch Commander Lt. Timothy King could not comment on the incidents due to them being open investigations. But no other charges have been filed yet and police believe there is no danger to the public.

Editor's note: This post was derived from information supplied by Concord Police Department and does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the removal request process for New Hampshire Patch police reports.

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