she and her husband were at the punta gorda police department tuesday. she was picked to be part of a shoot/don't shoot role play scenario. she is excited to do it. but during the exercise the she was taken to the hospital but died. officer cole had been with the department 2-1/2 years. the recover he fired had been used in previous classes with no problem. how and why this happened is still a major question that the florida department of law enforcement is looking to answer. >> we believe that the particular caliber of the weapon used, that there were only blank rounds available to the officer. >> being bitter and angry and hateful isn't going to bring her back. the room. she's a hero. >> reporter: officer cole is on administrative leave. we learned he was the subject of an internal investigation after an incident last year where he used his canine partner to take down an unarmed man on a bicycle who wasn't following orders. that man was significantly injured. he said his family will forgive that's what his mother would want. real guns will not be used

police training exercise. 73-year-old mary knowlton follow veered to take tactical exercise in punta gorda. police say the officer accidentally shot and killed her. the shooting is under investigation. her husband gary also took part in the exercise. >> we tried to save her life, i was just in shock. didn't know what to do. >> officer cole is on leave during the investigation. we're learning he was forced to resign from the miramar police

accidentally killed a the 73-year-old victim was participating in a role playing event at "punta gorda police headquarters" called "shoot/don't shoot" when the accident happened, yesterday. abc's marci gonzalez reports for us this afternoon. police in florida- calling it a tragic accident? a woman volunteering at a community event on police safety- shot and killed by an officer? audio/phoner gfx/animation john wright witness / president of chamber of commerce phoner: we were all just standing there thinking she's gonna stand up in a minute. 73-year-ol former librarian-pictured here on facebook - was participating in a community role playing event designed to show the public in punta gorda, florida -what its like when police are forced to make split second decisions. these facebook pictures show a similar class back in march. witnesses at yesterday's citizen police academy event say- an officer fired at knowleton with what were supposed to be blanks?..but the gun mistakenly had at least one live round in it. chief tow lewis / punta gorda police department "during the first scenario in a horrib

police department says cole did not violate policy. this wasn't the first time taking part in the training playing in the shoot/don't shoot scenarios. scenarios like the one in punta gorda also happen in the bay area. tampa is one of several local communities with a police academy. mary dahmer is part of the police citizens review board. it reviews internal affairs department. all of them went through the academy to understand how the department operates. dahmer says the training included real life scenarios but punta gorda accident happened. she says during the entire exercise, tampa police never pointed a gun at the class. >>> a girl ran away from home and police were back to arrest her father for child abuse charges. he is in jail for hog tying his daughter and punching her repeatedly. when police got to the and hives on the wrists. they went back after 911 calls from concerned neighbors who saw the girl running down the street. >>> as for the latest on the zika virus now. up to 21 locally transmitted cases as lawmakers meet with they met with researchers to find out what's being done to stop the spread of the zika virus. senator nelson has urged congress to send mor

shayla reaves is at the punta gorda police station right now with the latest on what's going on and the search for answers. good morning. >>reporter: yeah. good morning to you. there are certainly a lot of questions surrounding this situation and getting those answers could take some time. right now we're on the back side of the public safety complex housing the punta gorda police department. this is an area right there on the other side of that caution tape where individuals can cross at this time. this includes, of course, the florida department of law enforcement. we've learned that the police chief for the punta gorda police department has asked that agency to conduct an independent investigation into the events unfolding. we're told this all started with a love role playing exercise when to use and not use lethal force. it happened as part of the a training session attended by more than 30 people. among those who attended, 73-year-old mary nolten. she was randomly selected to take part in what was supposed to be a, quote, shoot, don't shoot scenario. instead, simulation became real

during a training exercise at the punta gorda police department. "mary knowlton" and another person were picked randomly for a role playing scenario where an officer had to decide whether to shoot... or not shoot. nolon was mistakenly hit with a ?live round, and later died. the broadcast live on facebook overnight:' the officer who shot the woman is the officer who the officer who shot the woman is and the f-d-l-e is handing the investigation. fox 13's shayla reaves will be covering this story for us this morning. she's heading down to punta gorda... and will bring us live updates throughout the morning. a tarpon springs family lost their home... but not their lives... after a big fire. the fire started at this mobile home on saint charles drive. it took firefighters from both tarpon springs and palm harbor to put out the flames. the home was already fully involved the home were able to make it out safely. the red cross is helping the family with a place to stay. and another family survived a fire... the husband woke up in the middle of the night,

(chief tom lewis / punta gorda police) "we were unaware that any live ammunition for this particular weapon existed." in the midst of his grief, mary knowlton's son steve -- also expressing compassion for the officer. (steve knowlton / son) "i want him to know that we know he ... i'm sure didn't intend on this happening and i forgive him." officer coel - now on administrative leave during the investigation. i'm reid binion reporting records show the police officer who shot the accused of excessive use of force at a previous department where he worked. now to maryland where a powerful explosion shook houses a mile away. within minutes, a huge section of the building collapsed and flames shot into the sky. the intense fire is to blame for the deaths of at least two people.... and the injuries of dozens more. people were trapped inside the four story apartment building.... one couple had to climb out a window on the third floor and drop their five month old baby down to people below. (madelyn fuentes/resident)- "what i saw was a lot of buildings on fire. i got so scared there were peopl

it happened in punta gorda, about 75 miles south of tampa. david begnaud is there. (punta gorda police chief thomas lewis) maryy knowlton is a phenomenal person in this community she attends a lot of community events. its just an horrific time for all of us it happened just before 7 pm tuesday night... at the punta gorda public safety complex. mary knowlton was among about 35 people taking part in the city's 8 week "citizen police academy." (punta gorda police chief thomas lewis) "two participants were randomly selected to be put through a shoot, don't shoot scenario.//during the first scenario, in a horrible accident, participant mary knowlton was mistakenly struck with a live round." the victim was (gfx in) her son gave a statement to cbs news. "...this is a devastating time for us my mom was a saint such a tremendous loss of a wonderful human being and the best mom a kid could ever hope for" (steven knowlton) (punta gorda police chief thomas lewis) "we were unaware that any live ammunition for this particular weapon existed." knowlton was reportedly shot several times... according t

the nationwide changes the punta gorda police chief hopes to put into place. >>> first, bill has an update on the tropical system we've been watching. >> i do. as a matter of fact, it's not going to give us much of a problem today little bit of action out there, but nothing to worry about. truly, this is something that we are keeping a watch on. it's so far out there right now, we'll give you the details of what's going on. right now, there is a disturbance out here on the gulf that the folks at the national hurricane center are keeping an eye on? farther south, we're getting a pump of moisture because of what could be hermine. right now, we've got 79 in clear water, 78 in tampa and st. peters with 77. there's going to be some tailgating today. the tailgate cast all around west tampa. game start as 8:00. you can start tailgating as early as you want. around 2:00, you could see showers, but things should break by game time as the highs push in to the low 90s. all right. we're going to see a lot of activity around raymond james stadium today. for right now, things are very calm and q >> frid

the punta gorda police said coel did nothing wrong, but they gave him more training. that man's attorney, though, saying this. >> if he is too aggressive for punta gorda with him acting like he's in fallujah every time he pulls over a car -- >>> u.s. senator marco rubio is scheduled to speak at a conference with a lineup of mean anti-gay speakers. the event is fueling bigotry. meanwhile, with one from the one orlando fund is weeks away to going to victims' families, we're learning about survivors denied help from a state program. >> it's frustrating to deal with that and try to figure out what bills to pay and what bills can wait. so that's where i'm probably at right now. >> reporter: craig johnson is one of hundreds trying to get back to normalcy after being wounded or witnessing it. now he's turning to the united assistance center in orlando to get help. >>> holding another meeting on the zika virus. they will talk to community leaders about concerns regarding the outbreak. it starts in 45 mines in palm beach county. we'll bring you any updates you can use from the

. >> reporter: in this photo, a punta gorda police officer is seen handing 73-year-old mary knowlton a fake gun filled with laundry detergent. knowlton was there as a student in an effort by local police to show the community what it is they do. in a role playing exercise called "shoot/don't shoot" knowlton played a police officer. lee coel was what was called the bad guy. at the moment he shot knowlton. journalist sue paquin took the pictures. >> there were three or four shots and she came around. and at first she was starting to double over, and we all thought, she's getting into it, and she's play acting, role playing with it. and i don't think it was a split second later it that she fell we all realized there was something terribly wrong. >> reporter: punta gorda police chief tom lewis. why was your officer using a al scenario with a civilian? >> what i can tell you is that we were unaware that any live ammunition for this particular weapon existed. we believed that the particular caliber of the weapon used, that there were only blank rounds available to the officer. >> reporter:

a punta gorda police officer accidentally shot and killed a woman during a citizens academy. it happened at police headquarters during a role- playing scenario. the woman killed is 73-year-old one of two people randomly picked to simulate a shoot/don't shoot scenario. >> our entire police department and all our city leaders are absolutely devastated for everyone involved in this unimaginable event. >> the officer involved hasn't been identified yet but is now on administrative leave pending an investigation by the florida department of law enforcement. >>> a sarasota couple traveled to orlando to mark what would have been birthday. crosses are installed where her body was found have been stolen. a sarasota couple hopes this one will stay here and be a constant memorial for caylee on her birthday. >> happy birthday! >> reporter: no birthday cake, no candles, just balloons and a few strangers, that is all anthony got for her 11th goodenow say it's not enough so they built this cross. >> an innocent child taken. still someone needs to be held responsible for what happened to her.

mary knowlton died during a shoot don't shoot role playing scenario at the punta gorda citizen police academy. the officer is on leave. first united meth difficulties church in punta gorda is holding a memorial service for her this afternoon. punta gorda library where she worked is accepting donation. >> state of florida post a record tourism numbers through june preliminary estimates 57.4 million people visited state during 4.3 increase. last week university of florida reported that americans still plan to travel to the state within next 6 months despite the scare of zika. >> we told you last week the rays are looking for public's input about where their new

with blanks. >> the officer in punta gorda believed he was shooting blanks when he pointed a gun at a citizen, tragically taking her life. >> i reached out to punta gorda police requesting a copy of their standard procedure for the training academy. they said no specific policy exists. however, this is designed to be portion, the most important role playing scenario as the last interactive activity of the night. right now they say it's unclear what steps they will take to make sure it doesn't happen again. however, they do not plan to use any real weapons in the future. cynthia? >> a lot of questions to be answered, still. thanks a lot, crystal clark. >> a shooting death in hills borrow county has a strange twist tman who was shot and killed today actually killed a man 15 years ago in another road rage fox 13's josh cascio is live in dover where this morning's shooting happened. josh, fill in the details for us here. >> josh: well, chris, tonight we're hearing from the victim's wife from that 2001 incident. she tells us in her words her husband's killer basically experienced car may and she says he got what was coming to him. let's recap what happened in 2001

punta gorda police officer shoots and kills a 73-year-old woman. naer nolten was one of nearly three dozen people in the class. she was randomly selected to take part in a shoot, don't shoot scenario. that's how officers trained to use lethal force. in the scenario, the officer was playing the bad guy. in the scenario, he fired several times at nolten who was supposed to be pyi it was a tragedy. more than a simulation. apparently at least one bullet was in the round. nolten was shot and later died in the hospital. an officer who has not been named is on administrative leave, which is standard in officer involved shootings. >>jennifer: arkansas man is out of jail as deputies say he attempted to bring a gun into the magic kingdom at walt disney world. he was randomly selected to go through a metal detector. sherwood police officer from arkansas. webb was fired from the department back in 2013 for dishonesty. he's charged with carrying a concealed firearm and falsely impersonating an officer. >>russell: much of our area, today is the first day of scho

afternoon summer thunderstorms. >>> tragedy in the police department, how did a citizen training exercise end with a 73- year-old woman dead in punta gorda? >> in the last 30 minutes we've learned more about the woman. her name is mary k abc action news reporter rodney dunigan is live outside the punta gorda police department where dozens of people watched the tragic scene. a demonstration that went >>> let's go to democracy 2016 -- we're having audio problems. donald trump begins two days of campaigning events in florida but he's heading to south florida for a rally in sunrise first. >> tomorrow night he'll appear at the silver spurs arena in kissimmee. yesterday democrats accused trump of inciting violence when he said second amendment supporters could take action to stop hillary clinton. later he said he meant gun rights advocates could use their power on election day to elect him. >>> house speaker wins in a landslide. that might be a bad sign for donald trump. voters naming him winner of the wisconsin republican primary by 84%. he easily defeated businessman paul nealan who trump praised. trump finally endorsed ryan late last week.

a punta gorda police officer accidentally shot and killed a woman during a citizens academy. it happened at police headquarters during a role- playing scenario. the woman killed is 73-year-old

knowlton" died during a "shoot - don't shoot" role playing scenario last tuesday night at the punta gorda police department's citizens police academy. is on leave. the first united methodist church in punta gorda is holding a public memorial service for knowles this afternoon. it starts at two p-m. knowlton was well known in the community because she worked at the local library. the punta gorda library is accepting donations in her honor. the search is on in north florida... for a missing fisherman. and the coast guard is asking ?all boaters to be on the lookout. they're searching for 47 year old "mitchell zegi" from ocala. he went out on a fishing trip sunday in his 22 but he never came home sunday night. zegi was out near "horseshoe beach"... thats up in dixie county. his family reported him missing on monday. the coast guard sent an airplane and a helicopter from clearwater to help in the search. they need to comb about two ?thousand miles. florida fish and wildlife is also assisting. if anyone sees zegi or the boat, they're asked to call the coast guard immediately. police in auburndale need

inside the punta gorda police department. that's when 73-year-old mary knowlton... a student at the department citizen's police academy.. hospital... police say it happened during the first scenario.. when officers were instructing the class on how to use simulated lethal force. the officer involved has been put on adminstrative leave./// ((kirsten joyce)) >>> we're learning more about what caused three children to fall from a ferris wheel at a fair in tennessee. investigators say the children -- ages 16, 10 and 6 -- were on the ride when one of the baskets flipped over-- the children fell 35 to 40 feet. police now say a mechanical issue may be to blame: capt. tim davis/greeneville police) (("the inspectors have found that there is a mechanical issue with this ride behind me, that they believe led to the incident at hand)) ((kirsten joyce)) >>> the six-year-old is in critical condition with a traumatic brain injury. the 16-year-old was in critical condition but is now stable. the 10-year-old is also stable./// ((kirsten joyce)) >>> still ahead... some wild weather ha

"mary knowlton" died during a "shoot - don't shoot" role playing scenario last week at the punta gorda police department's citizens police academy. the shooting is the officer is on leave. the first united methodist church in punta gorda is planning a public memorial service tomorrow afternoon. many knew knowlton from the local library. that branch is accepting donations in her honor to help pay for their new library. detectives in pasco county need your help, finding this man. they believe he was behind a violent carjacking from earlier this month. he's 28 year old "lorezno lamont hardy." the carjacking happened back on august ninth. last seen on thursday in the holiday area, driving a red kia soul. if you see him, don't approach him... call crimestoppers. new video... from a dramatic rescue off the gulf coast. the coast guard tells us that a good samaritan heard a faint distress call -- alerting them to a capsized boat about 24 miles southwest of "matanzas pass preserve." that's not far from sanibel island. once crews arrived - -they found 3 adults and one child clinging to the hull. life j

the nationwide changes that punta gorda police chief hopes to put in place. >>> good morning. thanks for joining us on this friday at 9:00. >> we'll get to the day's headlines, but first bill logan is in for ivan. he's tracking the tropics and how it will affect us. >> we've been watching the web invest 99l. it still doesn't have a name. it still doesn't really have much of an organized center of circulation. this black and white picture here shows why they haven't even sent up a hurricane hunter plane, which was scheduled to check this storm out. it's really disorganized. very disorganized, as a matter of fact. there is another disturbance in the northern part of the gulf. 10% chance of this getting more developed as it moves off toward the west. meantime, we're keeping on gaston still. this hurricane could weaken and strengthen as it heads into the open waters. invest 99l may get a name this weekend. it would be hermine, but at this point, not much organization. we just showed you the spaghetti models that are taking it mostly into the middle of the gulf. it still may bring

police academy. >> the punta gorda pd will hold a news conference at 10:30. 73-year-old mary was shot in a scenario for use of force. the officer that shot here is officer lee cole. the training exercise is for members, and they are bringing volunteer. she was shot three times in the chest with real bullets instead of blanks. >> when she went down, i looked her straight in the eye. i saw that anguish in her eye. when she hitted floor, i hoped she wasn't feeling any pain. >> the chief says the gun had been used previously for other citizen academies. officer cole is on administrative leave. the fdle is investigating. the victim's family wants to know why a gun at her in the first place. >> we're learning more about the officer lee cole. he joined the police department in march of 2014. during his first year, he was promoted to k-9 officer which he called a dream come true. the night of october 30, 2015, perhaps the only blemish on his record until now, he had his k- 9 officer subdue a man who ignored an order to get down on his knees. that man is now suing but the not violate policy. >>> mary dahmer

just ten minutes to get from hear from the punta gorda police department holding a news conference this morning at 10:30. they're going to update us on the tragic shooting that ended with a 70-yeaold woman killed during a demonstration. an officer shot mary knowlton as she was taking part in the citizens pole academy. the trainswas for a scenario wherofrssht and don't shoot. he pulled the trigger and shot on three times the chest. other people who were there described what they saw when the gun went off. >> when she went down, i looked her straight in the eyend i felt the anguish in her eye. when she hit the floor, i hoped she hasn't feeling any pain. >> right now, they are looking >> we know officer coel joined the punta gorda police department in 2014 and within his first year, he was promoted to k-9 officer, something he called a dream come true. the only thing that sticks out is october 30, 2015, the k-9 officer subdued a man who ignod the officers' commands taking part in these sessions for mrcoel. frequently, he gave presentationand ecicly leyi in thshdot shoot scenarios. >>> talk

initial reports show the officer in punta gorda believed he was using a blank catridge when he pointed his and we reached out to punta gorda police, requesting a copy of ?their standard procedures for the citizens academy. they say no specific policy exists. they say the course is designed to be a simple 2 to 4 hour tour of the department... ending with the role-playing they're taking to make sure that tragedy never happens again. a developing story on the east coast: a woman and her young daughter almost hit by a ?bullet... while sitting in their minivan. it happened in ormond beach. "sonia bolles" was with her eight year old daughter stopped at an intersection. then, she heard a loud bang. when she got out to investigate -- she found that a bullet had gone through her passenger side door, ending up in her nter console. thankfully, it didn't hit them. bolles doesn't know what made her a target. beach police are hoping someone with information will come forward. an update this morning on all those delta flight delays. things are ?slowly improving for the airline... but not fast enough for some passengers. the number of canceled f

chief thomas lewis/punta gorda police dept. "i am asking that if you pray, you pray for mary's husband and family and for all the officers and witnesses that involved this incident. everyone involved is in an overwhelming state of shock and grief." ((kirsten joyce)) >>> the officer involved in the accidental shooting, who was not identified, has been put on administrated leave. the florida department of law enforcement is heading the investigation./// ((kirsten joyce)) >>> kentucky police are investigating after two men and it happened outside of a 60th birthday party in louisville tuesday night. all three shooting victims were taken to an area hospital. two of the victims were listed in critical condition. ((kirsten joyce)) >>> it has now been two years since the passing of ferguson tenn michael brown. yesterday marked the two year anniversay and during a yesterday marked the two year anniversay and during a demonstration in ferguson a protester was was hit by a car. officers says that a group of protesters who were blocking a

chief tom lewis / punta gorda police "we were unaware that any live ammunition for this particular weapon existed."in the midst of his grief, mary knowlton's son steve -- also expressing compassion for th steve knowlton / son "i want him to know that we know he ... i'm sure didn't intend on this happening and i forgive him."officer coel - now on administrative leave during the investigation. i'm reid binion reporting around the world... a terror suspect has been killed by police in canada. police say they killed the suspect yesterday in the southern ontario town of strath-roy. the man allegedly planned to carry out a suicide bombing mission in identified the suspect as aaron driver. the man ... who is in his mid-20's ... was reportedly under a court order to not associate with any extremist organization, including isis. police are expected to release more details about the case later today. toss to weather. a line of showers and storms is heading in our direction for this initial line earlier in the day, and another round late tonight. on top of the storm chances, it's going to be a hot a

the punta gorda police chief thomas lewis has described this as a horrible accident. when to use and when not to use lethal force. it happened during a session of the citizens police academy program tuesday. the exercise involved to participants randomly selected. one of them 73-year-old mary. during a shoot don't shoot scenario, authorities say a simulation became reality. a live round struck her who was later pronounced dead at the hospital. we're told the officer involved in the shooting administrative leave as is standard procedure in a police involved shooting. his future will be determined by outcome of this investigation. as for chief thomas lewis he did address media tuesday evening but did not take questions from those in attendance. in statement he did say our entire police department and all of our leaders here are absolutely devastated adding everyone involved is in an overwhelming state of shock. questions surrounding everything that that unfolded here mary has described a librarian a board member for the friends of the punta gorda library organization a v

the training took place at the punta gorda police department. "mary knowlton" and another person were picked randomly for a role playing scenario where an officer had to decide whether to shoot... or not shoot. nolon was mistakenly hit with a ?live round, and later died. the police chief gave an overnight:the officer who fired is now on paid leave... and the f-d-l-e is handing the investigation. fox 13's shayla reaves will be covering this story for us this morning. she's heading down to punta gorda... and will bring us a live update at five. take a good look at these surveillance images: hillsborough county deputies hope they will help catch some smash and grab robbers at two local businesses. invstigators say the two men you see here smashed the glass doors at "jayc beverage" and "pannarano pizzeria" just after 6 a-m. they left on foot -- with the cash. if you recognize them, call crimestoppers. and some more surveillance video, this time up in gainesville. it shows some scary road rage... right near the university of florida campus. you can s

a punta gorda police officer accidently fired a loaded gun at her chief and dozens of witnesses saw the shooting. at the funeral, family members spoke about the role faith and forgiveness played in her life. knowlton was a homecoming queen who married her high school sweetheart 54 years ago. she was also a librarian -- well known in the punta gorda community. the f-d-l-e is still investigating why the officer had a loaded weapon. that officer is on paid leave, until the investigation is complete. a scary scene on the east coast of florida... where police say a college student ?killed a couple, and even ?bit one of them in the face. even scarier... police think it was completely random. it happened in jupiter, over in martin county on monday night. police say 19-year-old florida state student "austin harrouff" was having dinner with his family at a restaurant when he got upset and stormed out. police say he walked home... but turned down a random the man and woman were stabbed... along with a neigbhor who tried to stop it. the neighbor is still in the hospital. when police arrived they s

from punta gorda, kuizon. punta gorda police chief expected to speak about later it with fox 13 for updates throughout day. >> new at noon a long time host of espn has passed away unexpectedly at the age of 61. the death of john saunders was announced this morning oh sports center by hanna storm. details surrounding long time sportscaster's death are still unclear. saunders joined espn in 1986 and went on to co-host nfl prime time. saunders is survived by his wife wanda and two daughters alia ya and yes in a. is your drinking water safe? the answer to that question may be no. according to a new study published by environmental science and technology letters millions of americans may be drinking water with unsafe levels of industrial chemicals. >> these chemicals may have been length to high cholesterol hormone suppression ask even cancer. they were found in drinking water for six million people in drinking water from 13 states accounted for 75 percent of the detections. but that list includes florida. >> there is progress in the

chief tom lewis / punta gorda police "we were unaware that any live ammunition grief, mary knowlton's son steve -- also expressing compassion for the officer. steve knowlton / son "i want him to know that we know he ... i'm sure didn't intend on this happening and i forgive him."officer coel - now on administrative leave during the investigation. i'm reid binion reporting we're told the officer on leave has been in trouble before. he was accused of using excessive force with his police dog and resigned from another police agency in 2013 for failing to satisfactorily complete an agenc grim new statistics coming out of milwaukee county. the medical examiner's office calls it unprecedented. in just the past two weeks -- at least 20 people have died from heroin overdoses. we're told -- on average-- one person dies from a heroin overdose every 3-days. the other shocking statistic: there are 39-confirmed fentanyl deaths so far this year. for all of last year -- that number was 30. it's happened again - for the fourth time in a week - ride. the latest incident happened today in pennsylvania.

two volunteers and one punta gorda police officer. play, naree knowlton was playing the role of a police officer. they use blanks for this but in this case there was one live round fired. overnight the police chief said knowlton was shot just once. a fatal shot. she was pronounced dead at a local hospital. here's what else the chief had to say. >> our entire police department and all of our city leaders are absolutely devastated for everyone involved in this unimaginable event. i am asking that if you pray, you pray for mary's husband and family and for all of the officers and witnesses that were involved in this incident. every one involved is in a state of overwhelming shock and grief. >> the florida department of law enforcement is now investigating this death. we know the officer involved has not yet been identified but is on administrative leave. there is one discrepancy here. we know that, of course, there was this single live round that was used. but a local news photographer who was covering this police academy, citizens polic

police department's ?gun demonstration.? it happened last night in front of a few dozen people in punta gorda. 73-year-old mary board member at the local library- was a student at the department's citizen police academy. she was mistakenly hit with a live round. nearly 35 people were watching a "shoot.. don't shoot" demonstration when it happened. she was rushed to the hospital where she died. 3 chief thomas lewis/punta gorda police dept. "i am asking that if you pray, you pray for mary's husband and family and for all the officers and witnesses that involved this incident. everyone involved is in an the fatal shot is now on admistrative leave. 3 a neo-natal intensive care unit at a maryland hospital remains closed this morning... after three babies tested positive for a potentially deadly bacteria.officials at "prince george's hospital center" transferred several infants to other hospitals yesterday. authorities believe the bacteria originated in water pipes leading into the hospital. red sox fans are ?buzzing? about a bobblehead giveaway con. cont fans were expecting to get at last night's game.it's a bobblehead depicting a

punta gorda with late details. >> reporter: 73-year-old mary knowlton a retired librarian, married 55 years with her attended a community event on tuesday, gary witnessed in disbelief as this punta gorda police officer dressed as a criminal during a role playing exercise shot gary's wife, first in the shoulder and then a second fatal shot to her chest. mary's son, steve, describes what her father saw. >> it was surreal. at first we thought she just fell down and the turned her over and that's when they saw the bullet holes. >> reporter: by all accounts, it was tragic accident. the revolver was not supposed to have live ammunition. they had gathered at a public complex for a citizen's safety class much like this one. >> get your hands up. >> reporter: demonstrating a shoot don't shoot scenario, mary was cast as a cop witnesses say chaos ensued aimed a loaded firearm at her and fired. >> i know chen when she hit the ground i looked over at the police chief and saw the anxiety and panic and horror in his face and that's when i knew this was serious. >> reporter: tonight, the officer, lee cole, a two-year veteran is on paid leave. earlier this year, controversy surrounded officer cole after a ma

the nationwide changes the punta gorda police chief hopes to put into place. >>> first, bill has an update on the tropical system we've been watching. >> i do. as a matter of fact, it's not going to give us much of a problem today little bit of action out there, but nothing to worry about. truly, this is something that we are keeping a watch on. it's so far out there right now, we'll give you the details of what's going on. right now, there is a disturbance out here on the gulf that the folks at the national hurricane center are keeping an eye on? farther south, we're getting a pump of moisture because of what could be hermine.

. >>> the punta gorda police chief says he takes responsibility for the death of a woman that one of his officers shot during a training exercise. the chief held a brief news conference today. but as fox 13 reports, he is not the chief told us today he accepts full responsibility for what happened here. he appeared emotional but when it came to the tough questions he wouldn't even listen to them. mary nolten was shot to death in front of her own husband. many of her friends and colleagues and the police chief. while it was one of his officers who pulled the trigger, chief tom lewis says the tragedy is his own responsibility. >> as your chief of police i accept full responsibility f >> reporter: during a briefing this morning the chief would not discuss the one question on everyone's mind. why the gun used in tuesday night's training demonstration was loadsed with live ammunition. >> our september has conducted these role play exercises over the past two years running more than a dozen separate participants safely through the scenarios. obviously in this circumstance something went te

>> a witness relives a tragic moment when a 73-year-old grandmother is shot and killed by a punta gorda police officer during a training demonstration. >> he is the founder of isis. >> today, donald trump comes out one day after calling barack obama the founder of isis. what stops will trump make today? >> i will personally make sure this doesn't happen again. >> we're now hearing from the ceo of delta airlines after the outage that affected flights worldwide. how he says the company will win back customers' trust. >>> good morning. thank you for joining us on this thursday. i'm deiah riley. >> we're now hearing from people who were at the punta gorda citizens academy when a killed a grandmother. >> it happened during a shoot/don't shoot scenario. the gun used had real bullets instead of blanks. michael paluska has more from a witness. >> she stood next to me as she was walking into the scenario and said, i do not know what heim doing, but this is going to be fun. those were the last things i heard from her. >> reporter: she said those final words to join wright, the president of the punta gor

punta gorda police say an officer demonstrating a shoot/don't shoot scenario had a live round of ammunition in his gun instead of blanks. this woman, mary nolton, and another person were randomly selected to play a role in the how she was killed. >> she was the type of person that was iconic and lit up a room. that's what she should be known for, not the woman that got killed in some freak accident. >> reporter: listen to this -- he also says he forgives the officer as he knows it was just an accident. the city manager is bringing in the state's department of law >>> we're learning more about that ferris wheel accident in tennessee that badly injured three girls. the basket they were in malfunctioned, flipped over and that tossed them out. they fell about 40 feet down to the ground. the girls ages, 16, 10 and 6 were seriously hurt. in fact, the 6-year-old is in critical condition tonight with a traumatic brain injury. freight train derailed near lexington, kentucky. people who live there say they were to stay inside because of one of the cass was carrying sulfuric acid. in the end, no one w

they were doing a citizens academy, again, it is evening for the punta gorda police department. a 73-year-old woman, mary nolton was shot, and it happened during a role play scenario with a police officer playing a bad guy. apparently he fired several times, this is according to the news press at a woman who was supposed to be playing the victim. again, 35 civilians from the community were brought in for this two-hour police academy where they participate in these randomly selected scenarios, one of which was the shoot, don't shoot scenario. this is where officers make decisions based on real-time scenarios about lethal force and doing so in live role play. we heard there from chief tom lewis about how devastating this s. he's asking for prayers for mary's family. again, 73-year-old mary nolton was shot and killed during this role play that happened during a citizens academy on tuesday evening. we'll get more information from chief lewis and also the punta gorda police investigators who are now looking into this tragic exercise that went terribly wrong. >>> we're also awaiting fo