SALISBURY, N.C. (AP) — An 83-year-old patient shot and wounded a doctor at a Veterans Affairs hospital before the gunman was killed by police.
Johnny Reid of Rowan, a patient at the W.G. Hefner VA Medical Center, was being examined by Dr. Charles Flynn when Reid pulled out a small-caliber handgun Thursday, police said.
Flynn was shot once in the chest, authorities said. Another physician and two nurses escaped and called for the hospital's police.
Salisbury Police Deputy Chief Mark Wilhelm said Reid shot at the officers, who fired back and struck Reid. He died at the scene.
Flynn, 42, of Lexington, was flown to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, where he was in critical condition early this morning, said Barbara Lee, a nursing official.