Victim of attempted murder shares experience

On Sept. 9, Aaron Arnold, pre-medical junior, was shot and fatally wounded while helping a co-worker refill her gas tank in the Olive Garden parking lot on Seigen Lane.

His co-worker, a female University student whose identity is being withheld for her protection, was also shot at the scene and became a witness to the murder.

The victim said this experience has changed her perception of safety.

A local news station that released her identity was reprimanded by police and her family members. The victim said this leak makes her feel unsafe.

"I'm scared; I really am," she said. "It's hard for me to do regular things. Where I used to go out at night to get cigarettes or fill my gas, now I think twice. I was with a guy when it happened. Normally you think that's enough. There was nothing I could have done or anyone could have done. It was [the shooter's] decision. I just don't want to live my life in fear."

The victim, who was a server at Olive Garden with Arnold, said she left the building around 11 p.m. and went to start her car but realized it was out of gas.

When Arnold started to leave, he realized his co-worker was having trouble, and he came back to pick her up to get gasoline.

She said that when they got back to her car, a white Sedan pulled up close to them.

"I looked at Aaron. We didn't recognize the people in the car," she said. "We thought that maybe they were there picking someone up from inside the restaurant."

The man in the passenger seat got out, pointed a gun at them and demanded their money.

"I wasn't scared," the victim said. "I was more surprised. I was shocked. I even said to him, 'Are you kidding me?'"

She said she could hear the man in the driver's seat tell the other man to shoot.

The victim said she started walking away from the armed man when she heard the shots.

"It was like loud fire crackers," she said.

Arnold was shot in the chest, and the other victim was shot in the legs.

"It felt like my whole leg just went numb," she said. "It was like someone kicked me, and then I got Charlie-horse."

After the shooter fled the scene, the victim fell to the ground and called 911.

She said that despite the intensity of the situation, she remained surprisingly calm.

"My first reaction was, 'Yell, yell, yell for help,'" she said. "But I wasn't freaking out, I was really aware of my surroundings."

Police, fire trucks and an ambulance rushed to the scene.

The victim and Arnold were brought to Our Lady of the Lake hospital where their families and friends were contacted.

She said once she arrived at the hospital, she could feel the tremendous pain in her legs.

The bullet went straight through her muscles, missing her bones and major arteries.

"My mom found out [I had been shot in the legs] and just passed out," the victim said. "My brother's in the Marines, and he always sees people get shot and lose their legs or become permanently handicapped. I'm very grateful it wasn't worse."

It was her best friend who told her Arnold died in the attack.

Arnold's mother visited her room to talk to her about the shooting.

"She was really quiet," the victim said. "You could tell she had been crying. She was just in shock still."

The victim was released from the hospital to her parents' care Sept. 11.

"I didn't start getting really emotional until I got home," she said. "I went into shock."

She said that in the days that followed, she suffered from nightmares and paranoia.

She could not attend Arnold's funeral because she was still physically incapacitated and advised by family and friends that she was not emotionally ready.

For the next few days, the victim said she had trouble moving around the house, even to use the bathroom or take a shower.

"Simple things were hard," she said.

She returned to her classes this past week where she noticed while wobbling around in her crutches that the campus is not what she called "handicapped savvy."

On Saturday, East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office arrested a suspect identified as the shooter.

Tracy Young, of 5357 Hammond Street, was arrested on counts of first degree murder, attempted first degree murder and attempted armed robbery with a firearm, according to a Sheriff's Office news release.

The victim said she participated in a photographic line-up and positively identified Young.

She said she remembers the shooter's face, but she remembers the face of the driver even more clearly.

"Until the next person is caught, I will still feel unsafe," the victim said.

The victim said she expects that eventually the other man involved in the shooting will "get what he deserves."

She said she now is more cautious about her safety and more appreciative of her health.

"I never thought this would happen to me or anyone I know," she said. "It happened so fast. It was just a senseless act of violence."

Maj. Lawrence Rabalais, LSUPD spokesman, said students can protect themselves by walking in well-lit areas and staying in groups.

Rabalais said students should avoid walking early in the morning or late at night, but if it is unavoidable students should walk with keys in their hands.

Anyone with additional information about the shooting is asked to contact the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office at 389-5000.

----- Contact Rebekah Allen at rallen@lsureveille.com