TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – A young mother was among 12 injured in a shooting on Perry Street over the weekend.
Iyonti Smith, 22, is recovering after being shot in the neck during the shooting that took place Saturday night after Florida A&M University hosted the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions for their annual homecoming game that night. The injury fractured her jaw and required several surgeries.
Smith, who has a 3-year-old daughter, was preparing to begin a new career as a pharmacy technician at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare this week.
Smith and her sister, Makayla Jackson, said they were enjoying the FAMU homecoming tailgating festivities on Perry Street when gunfire erupted. Both said their first instinct was to get away from the gunfire.
However, while the incident unfolded, Smith said she collapsed after she began vomiting blood. Jackson recalled finding her sister on the ground after taking cover.
“I hid behind the green thing that’s in the grass. When I looked up, I saw her lying down. So, I crawled over there and asked another girl told me not to look. I ended up looking. When she turned to me, that’s when I knew she was shot.”
Jackson said she plans to remain by her sister’s side throughout her recovery.
“We’ve always been together. We’ll be on the phone together all the time,” Jackson said. “So, really just being with her every step of the way is really what’s keeping everything together.”
Since the weekend shooting, Smith has been transferred to a hospital in Gainesville, where she has undergone several surgeries. She could be released as soon as Thursday night or Friday.
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Doctors said Smith will need to wear a neck brace for several months as she continues to heal.
A GoFundMe has been organized to assist the victim’s family in covering her medical expenses.
Local leaders are expected to hold a prayer vigil for Smith and the other victims Thursday at Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church on Tuskegee Street at 6 p.m.
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