According to the NYPD, a fight in a custody dispute on Manhattan’s Upper East Side on Friday resulted in the deaths of a mother and grandmother.
It happened on East 88th Street between York and East End Avenue, right down the block from Gracie Mansion’s entrance, soon before nine in the morning.
Authorities are looking into the site of what appears to be an attempted murder-suicide on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
When the gunfire started, people who had been out enjoying the day—many of them had strollers for babies—ran for safety.
Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny of the New York Police Department stated that the sad murder-suicide was caused by a custody dispute.
The 45-year-old Marissa Galloway had just put her child in the car and was closing the trunk when the child’s grandma came up. At that point, according to the police, 65-year-old Kathleen Leigh pulled out a 9mm Glock and shot Galloway twice—once in the back and once in the head while she lay on the roadway behind the car.
Then, on the sidewalk, Chicagoan Leigh shot herself in the head. At the scene, she was pronounced deceased. After being taken to the hospital, Galloway passed away. Galloway had been in a custody battle with the child’s father, who was not hurt in the incident.
In addition to two previous complaint files, the NYPD had records of at least five complaints of domestic disputes inside the family. According to Kenny, a gun was discovered in Leigh’s tote bag and a 9mm gun was discovered on the pavement next to her.
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“She is a retired Cook County probation officer living in New York City with family members for the past three years,” Kenny stated.
Galloway had been Fordham University’s track coach for many years and was an accomplished runner.
Prior to 2019, she worked as a volunteer assistant track and field coach at Fordham for 17 years, having graduated from the school in 1999. In Westchester, Galloway was a teacher as well. Galloway has a 1-year-old daughter who is not connected to the suspect, in addition to her son. She didn’t witness the incident.
