Woman dead, daughter injured in dispute at New Year’s party on Colorado Street
Shortly after the New Year arrived in Columbus, Nancy Pearl Johnson was shot to death through a door during a celebration party on Colorado Street, authorities said Monday.
Johnson, 63, was pronounced dead at 1:36 a.m. in the emergency room of Midtown Medical Center in Columbus, said Muscogee County Deputy Coroner Charles Newton. The first homicide of 2018 will be sent to the crime lab in Decatur for an autopsy.
Johnson’s 44-year-old daughter was injured during the 12:28 a.m. shooting in the 2900 block of Colorado Street. She was treated for non-life threatening injuries at the hospital and later released.
Police were called to the Colorado Street home to check on two people shot, Police Lt. Greg Touchberry said in a release. At the scene, they found both women suffering from gunshot wounds.
A dispute occurred after a man was denied entry into the gathering to usher in the New Year. Shots were fired through the door, striking Johnson.
The daughter was shot after going outside the house to see what happened. Police are looking for a man who left the scene on foot after the shooting. The man was described as black, 55-65 years old, about 5-foot-6 and 160-180 pounds. He was wearing a black leather jacket, black shirt and khaki-type pants.
The death came more than a week after Joseph Howard Johnson III, 68, was killed Dec. 20 in a shootout at the Columbus Pawn Shop on Fort Benning Road. Although Columbus recorded 35 homicides, some victims still are being treated in the hospital for serious injuries and the total may rise.
No classification has been made on the Friday death of 35-year-old Jarvis Lykes, who was shot in the right shoulder after fleeing a DUI road check and struggling with a Georgia State Patrol trooper at the dead end of Lumpkin Court.
Anyone with information on the Johnson homicide should contact Cpl. Katina Williams at 706-225-4434 or katinawilliams@columbusga.org.
This story was originally published January 1, 2018 at 12:57 PM with the headline "Woman dead, daughter injured in dispute at New Year’s party on Colorado Street."