Police: Woman shot in chest now in stable condition
A mother remains hospitalized after she was shot in the chest and paralyzed in her Georges Township home, prompting a 911 call from her 13-year-old son.
Dadrian Monique 鈥淩asta鈥� Bennett, 28, of Fairchance admitted he argued with Melissa Uhrin, 36, and hit her before the shooting Saturday morning on Gallatin Avenue.
But he claims that he was only unloading the .38-caliber revolver when it went off, police said.
He was arraigned that night by Magisterial District Judge Richard Kasunic II and lodged in Fayette County Prison without bail on attempted murder of the first degree and other charges, according to court documents.
Uhrin鈥檚 son told police he was playing a video game when he heard a gunshot. His 5-year-old sister ran into the room crying and saying, 鈥淩asta shot Mommy!鈥� He said he found his mom lying facedown on the floor, unable to move her legs, police said.
A Uniontown Hospital emergency room care manager told police Uhrin was paralyzed in the left leg and the bullet was lodged in her spine.
She was later transported to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia, for emergency surgery to repair a tear to her aorta, according to the affidavit of probable cause filed in Bennett鈥檚 case.
State police Trooper Richard Sizer said Uhrin was in stable condition Tuesday morning. He could not confirm whether her paralysis was permanent.
A social worker who stayed with Uhrin in the emergency room told police she could see bruises forming on the victim鈥檚 face and hand while at the hospital. She said Uhrin believed the shooting was intentional.
A Fairchance firefighter was the first to arrive at the shooting, and said he found Bennett applying pressure to the gunshot wound and pleading for help.
The 13-year-old son said told police Bennett hit his mother at about 6 a.m. during an argument. Uhrin left the house with her children, and later met up with Bennett to give him a GPS. The boy said at that meeting, he saw a gun in Bennett鈥檚 pocket, according to court documents.
Bennett told police the gun in his pocket was only a BB gun he found in the car. He said he and Uhrin were fighting that morning over text messages she sent to a man. He said he went home when he saw her return to the house. He claimed he was attempting to unload the revolver and put it away when a bullet became stuck in the chamber and 鈥渨ent off on its own.鈥� He then called 911.
Bennett is facing additional charges of aggravated assault and two counts each of simple assault and recklessly endangering another person.
Court records indicate he does not have any recent criminal history in Pennsylvania.
The Jamaican native is held under a federal detainer set by The Department of Homeland Security, prison documents said. Sizer said a work visa that had been issued to Bennett was revoked.
His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Oct. 19 before Magisterial District Judge Jennifer Jeffries.