The Texas cheerleader who was shot in the back after her boyfriend accidentally got into the wrong car is recovering in ICU after having her spleen removed.
Payton Washington, 18, was described by her father as having “tough” days after she was shot around midnight Tuesday in an HEB market parking lot in Elgin after training at Woodlands Elite Cheer Co.
The cheerleader and another teammate were shot at by 25-year-old Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr, who reportedly opened fire on them. The gunman hit Payton in the back, causing her to vomit blood, while her friend was scraped by a bullet.
Payton’s father said she was transported to the hospital and has since been moved to recover in the ICU after suffering multiple organ damage. Her teammate was treated on the spot and fired.
“Payton has achieved everything she has with just one lung [from] when she was born. She’s tough as can be,” Kelan told Washington NBC.
Payton Washington, 18, is recovering in the ICU after being shot in the back
The cheerleader was on her way home from practice 170 miles from her home when she and three other teammates were attacked in a carpool lot.
Heather Roth, 21, was identified as the injured teammate alongside Payton. At the time of the incident, two other girls with Payton and Heather were not injured. They were identified as Kiana and Genesis.
Suspect Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr, 25, was arrested and charged with a third degree felony in connection with the shooting. He is being held on $500,000 bond
The incident arose as the girls returned to a designated carpool area. Payton and her friends would leave their car there to help shorten the 170-mile commute to encourage training in Houston.
When she returned to the lot, Heather got into the wrong car believing it to be her own.
At first, Heather didn’t see Rodriguez sitting in the passenger seat, but when she did, she started to panic because she thought there was a stranger in her car.
She quickly got back into her boyfriend’s car, but the suspect whose vehicle she had tried to get in approached them. Heather rolled down her window to apologize to Rodriguez, only to receive gunfire.
According to Payton’s father, the suspect said nothing before firing five shots at the girls.
“He raised his hands and then waved his gun and then just started firing at the girls,” Kelan said.
Kelan was shocked when the suspect chose to open fire on young girls, who did not appear to pose a threat.
“You saw her walking up to your door by accident…it’s a girl in a cheerleader outfit,” Kelan said.
Rodriguez was arrested and charged with a third-degree felony in connection with the shooting. He is being held on $500,000 bond.
She was born with only one lung and was called “tough” by her father
Washington (center left) was airlifted to the hospital after vomiting blood in the parking lot of an HEB supermarket. Meanwhile, Roth (center right) was treated and discharged
Heather Roth, 21, was identified as the injured teammate alongside Payton. She was stared at by a bullet and was treated at the scene
Speaking to fellow cheerleaders, Roth recalled the moment she accidentally got into the suspect’s car and when he started shooting
Payton is a senior in a Round Rock high school and was due to attend Baylor University this year on a scholarship.
According to Kelan, the cheerleader started gymnastics when he was 18 months old and has been a star athlete ever since.
Speaking to a group of people at Woodlands Elite on Tuesday, Heather shared her grief by saying, “Nobody deserves something like that.”
The ordeal has been described as a “senseless and arbitrary act of violence” by her Woodlands Elite Generals cheerleading squad, who GoFundMe to cover her medical expenses.
Lynne Shearer, the owner of Woodlands Elite Cheer, told Fox 7, “It was a harrowing night for all four of those girls.”
Speaking of Payton, she added: “She was literally born with one lung so from the very beginning as a baby she wasn’t even expected to survive let alone excel in athletics so she already has a lot of things surpassed.
“She is literally an icon in the world of all-star cheerleading. I mean, definitely in our gym, but literally all over the country she has so many little kids looking up to her.”