A young child is in the hospital in critical condition after a Sunday afternoon shooting at celebrity pastor Joel Osteen’s megachurch in Texas. The shooter died at the scene after being shot.
The incident occurred shortly before 2 p.m. when a woman walked into Lakewood Church, six miles from downtown Houston. She had a child with her who was between four and five years old.
The woman, thought to be between 30 and 35 years old, was also carrying a long gun, and she opened fire. The young child was hit during the shooting, but it is unclear who fired that shot. A man in the church was also shot in the leg and was treated at a local hospital.
Once the shooting began, two off-duty law-enforcement officers intervened — a 38-year-old agent with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission and a 28-year-old Houston Police Department officer. The incident occurred between morning and afternoon church services. Police have not released information about motive or the woman’s relationship to the child.
At a Sunday evening press conference, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said that the shooter also warned that she had a bomb, but authorities could find none on her or in her backpack or car. He said she was also spraying “some type of substance on the ground.”
Pastor Joel Osteen, as well as law enforcement officers, spoke at a press conference late yesterday. You can watch it here:
UPDATE: Collin Rugg of Trending Politics posted this information about the shooter on X Monday morning:
