A woman who reportedly threatened to kill her mother and take back her child died Thursday evening after a police shooting in Bath, according to police radio transmissions and the New Hampshire Attorney General’s office.
A statewide police alert said the woman was involved in a child custody dispute, suffered mental health issues, had expressed suicidal thoughts, possessed a firearm, and was believed to be heading to her mother’s home in Bath. Her mother was identified as the child’s guardian.
“Subject stated she was going to kill her mother and get her baby back,” a dispatcher said in the alert.
State troopers and local police had been looking for the woman’s vehicle earlier Thursday, according to the Attorney General’s office. Officers pursued the vehicle along Route 112 toward Bath, where it stopped near the intersection with Route 302.
Troopers and an officer encountered the woman, who appeared to be armed with a handgun, authorities said. Gunshots were fired, and the woman was injured. She was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
No other civilians or officers were physically injured. Authorities said there was no known threat to the public. The Attorney General’s office and State Police Major Crime Unit are investigating. Officials have not said who fired the shots.
The statewide alert described the woman as armed with a black Ruger 9 mm handgun and driving a gray 2012 Kia Forte with a temporary New Hampshire license plate.
Police radio transmissions indicate officers tracked the vehicle north on Interstate 93 near Thornton before it traveled along Lost River Road into Woodstock and continued west on Route 112 toward Bath.
During the pursuit, an officer reported that the driver had crossed the center line into oncoming traffic. Officers later arranged to deploy spike strips near the junction of Routes 112 and 302.
As the vehicle approached, a dispatcher relayed a report that the woman had threatened to kill herself or an officer if police stopped her.
“The calling party is on the phone . . . saying that she will either kill herself or kill an officer when she gets pulled over,” the dispatcher said. It was unclear who relayed that threat to authorities.
The vehicle struck the spike strips and stopped near a campground, according to radio transmissions. Fire crews were called to block nearby roads.
Officers then reported gunfire. A dispatcher said the woman had been hit and a firearm had been dropped. A commander told officers to stay back until a drone could provide a view of the vehicle.
Asked whether the woman’s wound was self-inflicted, a unit responded, “Unknown at this time. They’re rendering aid. That’s all I can tell you.”
Emergency medical crews later reached the scene on Route 112, about 200 yards from Route 302.
The circumstances of the shooting remain under investigation.