Left inset: Keona Hampton (Dallas County Jail). Right inset: Cecilia Simpson (Facebook). Background: The Five Below in Dallas, Texas, where the alleged shooting took place (Google Maps).
Authorities in Texas report that a woman reportedly brandished a firearm at a Five Below customer and discharged it multiple times in the parking lot, resulting in the victim’s death in front of her daughter. This occurred after the victim was allegedly upset that the suspect failed to say thank you for having a door held open for her.
“The shooter was saying, ‘Come outside. Let’s handle this outside. Let’s fight outside,'” recounted an alleged witness during an interview with local Fox affiliate KDFW concerning the incident on Tuesday. The shooting claimed the life of 41-year-old Cecilia Simpson, who was fatally wounded in front of her 20-year-old daughter, according to police.
“The mom and daughter were just telling her to like go away,” the witness, an ER nurse who attempted to administer lifesaving intervention, claimed regarding the 22-year-old suspect, Keona Hampton.
In an effort to de-escalate the situation, the mother and daughter attempted to enter their vehicle, but the suspect was not deterred, according to the witness, who preferred to remain anonymous. “They started to fight and that’s when the lady pulled out her gun and shot her,” the witness explained.
Based on an arrest affidavit acquired by KDFW, the narrative details that Simpson and her daughter were departing from a Five Below discount store located in the 3500 block of West Wheatland in the southeast Oak Cliff area of Dallas as Hampton was entering the premises.
Police reportedly say Simpson held a door open for Hampton, who proceeded to waltz inside without thanking her. This allegedly upset Simpson and she confronted Hampton over it, prompting an argument between them, police said.
Simpson and her daughter walked to their car and then drove to a PetSmart in the same shopping center, according to the affidavit. Hampton allegedly followed them and Simpson alerted PetSmart employees to what was happening.
The two women began arguing again and were both asked to leave the store, according to police. Once in the parking lot, Simpson and her daughter tried leaving when Hampton threw a drink bottle at their vehicle.
According to KDFW, cops say Simpson exited the vehicle and attacked Hampton with physical strikes while yelling to leave her alone. That’s when Hampton allegedly took out a handgun and started firing at Simpson, hitting her multiple times.
Surveillance video allegedly shows Hampton driving away after the incident. Authorities said they tracked her down using her license plate information and arrested the woman later that evening following a traffic stop.
Hampton allegedly admitted to police that she argued with Simpson and said she shot her in self-defense while trying to get Simpson away from her, KDFW reports. The alleged witness who spoke to the station said Simpson’s daughter was hysterical.
“The daughter was next to the mom the whole time,” the woman said. “It’s hard, you know, because the screaming of a child for her mother is never easy and it’s never going to leave my head.”
Hampton was booked into the Dallas County Jail. A bond has not been set.
