During last month’s shootout at the transit center in downtown Appleton, Outagamie County District Attorney Melinda Tempelis says Ruben Houston grabbed 30-year-old bystander Brittany Schowalter, and he was using her as a human shield.
Schowalter was shot in the upper leg, and another bullet grazed her head, causing a brain injury. Tempelis believes it’s likely that both shots came from police officers.
Appleton Police Chief Todd Thomas says in a hostage situation, officers have to decide in a split-second, whether a suspect could hurt more people, if they don’t act. He says it’s called the “greater danger theory.”
Schowalter was treated at a hospital, and she’s been released.
