SAN DIEGO — San Diego police arrested a woman Sunday who held a gun to her head and fired off rounds in a parking structure in downtown, not far from an annual marathon that was well underway, authorities said.
In announcing the arrest, police said the scene was secure and there was no threat to the community.
The incident began shortly before 11 a.m. as a call about a misdemeanor hit and run, Sgt. Tom Sullivan said. Officers later found a woman underneath a parked car on the 8th level of the parking structure, Sullivan told the Union-Tribune . She was taken into custody after she fired several shots, he said.
A number of streets surrounding the parking structure were closed as officers responded in the area near City Hall. Police didn’t immediately say if there were any injuries.
The shooting was near the finish line of the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon. The incident halted the race for about 10 minutes as police investigated, marathon officials said.
Leilani Sandan and her 7-year-old son were playing music from “Les Miserables” on their way to see the musical at the San Diego Civic Theater on Sunday afternoon when they were suddenly passed by more than a dozen police cars, sirens blaring. The shooting had just occurred in the parking garage they were headed to next to the theater.
“It was crazy,” Sandan said as she stood with hundreds of other ticketholders behind police tape. “It was like police, police, police, siren, siren, siren.”
She said she was glad to hear the marathon runners were OK. They were later escorted into the theater with the others, who shuffled past the yellow police tape.
Sara Wehr, 31, also was headed to the show with her family.
“It is a little nerve wracking that this just happened not long ago,” said Wehr as she lined up for roll call next to the flashing police cars. “We’re safe, right?”
The 26.2 mile course weaves its way through the city and also includes a half-marathon and a 5K run. More than 25,000 runners were expected to participate.
