Witness in Lakewood homicide nearly hit by bullets

Lakewood, wash. - Police in Lakewood are investigating a fatal shooting that left a woman dead Saturday night.  

Witnesses say it happened just before 9 p.m. in the Western Inn parking lot. 

"I heard the shots and I felt the back window blow out," said Shawn, a witness to the shooting. 

Shawn, who didn't want to provide his last name due to safety concerns, says he nearly lost his life during the shooting after bullets came flying into his truck. 

"I was just dropping off one of my little lady friends," said Shawn.  "The next thing, I hear somebody say, ‘Hey get back’. Then I heard pop pop pop and I just drove off."

The shots hit hist truck windows, within inches of his head.  

"All the back windows got shot out there are bullet holes on the other side," he said.  "I grabbed my girl and I thew her in my lap and just drove off and went against oncoming traffic and shots just kept coming towards the car and towards somebody else’s car and the other guy drove off the opposite way."

"Unfortunately, what happened here is an absolute travesty," said Zachary Cuzzetto, a manager at the Western Inn in Lakewood.  He says it points to a larger problem with gun violence in the city. 

"These are things that happen and nobody’s immune to it.  So, we are just hoping that the community and us can work together to erase what’s going on in our community," said Cuzzetto. 

David Bracken has worked on the corner of Tacoma Way, near the Western Inn, holding advertising signs for a local business for more than a decade.  As a longtime resident of the area, he says he's seen an uptick in violence first-hand. 

"We keep trying to get Lakewood police to do something. They’ve been riding shotgun every day, and they still come around.  Still bad people coming around here."

Anthony McCreary says he's been staying at the Western Inn for over a month.  He says that he didn't hear the shots, but was concerned when he learned about what happened.   

"People try to watch out for each other, those that know each other," said McCreary.

Another Western Inn resident, Lynn Box, says she didn't witness the shooting, but said people are talking.  "I guess she got ready to run out of her room and she got shot in the head, that’s what a guy who works here told me," said Lynn.    

Shawn told FOX 13 Seattle that he was glad to escape with his life. 

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"I was just dropping off my girlfriend and the next thing I know I start hearing gunshots and sirens, and I was like oh my gosh somebody got shot, and I was gone," said Shawn. 

Lakewood police said Sunday that they didn't have anyone in custody yet for the shooting.