An elderly woman, who was legally blind and deaf, was fatally shot by deputies in California responding to a break-in at her home after she refused to drop a gun she pointed at them, according to authorities.
Betty Francois, 91, of Victorville, was pronounced dead early Monday morning at a nearby hospital two days after the incident, according to a press release from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. (RELATED: Elderly Woman And Teen Among 5 Killed, 32 Shot In Chicago Weekend Violence)
While responding to the break-in on Saturday of an unknown intruder at Francois’s Sunburst Road residence, deputies were greeted by the elderly woman at the front door armed with a shotgun, according to the release. After deputies gave the 91-year-old commands to drop the weapon and she refused, authorities said a “deputy-involved shooting occurred.”
The Sheriff’s Specialized Investigations Division arrived on the scene and launched an investigation into the incident, according to a report from the Victorville Daily Press. Jodi Miller, a spokesperson for the sheriff’s department, told the outlet they could not reveal how many shots had been fired at Francois due to the ongoing investigation.
A relative of Francois told the newspaper the woman was blind and deaf.
Miller said deputies found no evidence of intruders at the property, according to the local outlet.