JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Police are trying to find a gunman after a woman was found dead inside her truck early Monday morning just north of the New Town area.
At about 5:30 a.m. a man was walking his dog outside his home on Eaverson Street and noticed a white Dodge pickup truck had crashed into a tree in his front yard. He called 911 to report the crash.
"When rescue arrived, they found a black female inside the vehicle unresponsive. They found she had been shot one time," said Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Sgt. Michael Paul.
Tonisha Allen said that woman was her mother, 50-year-old Michelle Allen Rhett.
"I don't understand why this had to happen to my momma," Allen said. "I know stuff happens and crime, but they didn't have to do that to my momma."
"She was probably giving someone a ride, because I know people will call her for a ride," Allen said. "Like I say, my momma is a helping person. She ain't going to say no."
Police said Rhett appeared to have been shot in the torso.
"We are treating it as a murder at this time. We are canvassing the area to see if anyone saw anything," Paul said.
Police believe Rhett died from the gunshot wound, not the crash, but they are awaiting results from an autopsy.
Eaverson was closed between Grothe Street and West Third Street while police investigate.
JSO said there were no witnesses to the shooting, but police are investigating neighbors who may have heard or seen the crash.
"High crime everywhere, especially this neighborhood," resident Herbert Kelly said. "It's frustrating. Go out the door, you don't know if you're going to get back in or not."
"It's a pretty bad neighborhood, pretty bad, but just about any neighborhood in Jacksonville is bad," resident Floyd Venable said. "There ain't anything I can do about it."
Police are asking anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS.