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A 75-year-old suburban Atlanta woman who called police for help was shot and killed during a confrontation between the officer who responded and her suicidal daughter, police said Wednesday.

Barbara Baker of Duluth died at the scene Tuesday night, and her daughter, Penny Schwartz, 51, died overnight at a hospital, according to the Gwinnett County Police Department.

In her call for help, Baker said her daughter was trying to shoot herself, according to a police department news release. But when a police officer arrived, Baker told him her daughter had been saying "that she wanted the police to shoot her."

As Baker talked to the officer inside the home, Schwartz "came downstairs and ... pointed a gun at the responding officer," the release said.

"The officer opened fire and the mother and daughter [were] shot," it said.

"The exact circumstances of how the mother was shot are unknown at this time and this incident is under investigation," police said.

The officer -- a 10-year veteran -- has been placed on "routine administrative leave" while the incident is under investigation, police said.

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/07/22/georgia.shooting/

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Derrick Schwartz thought his mother didn't sound quite like herself when she called him in Chicago Tuesday night.

Penny Schwartz, who had Crohn's disease, took a lot of medication, her 25-year-old son said, trying to explain.

But then she threatened to kill herself and hung up.

Derrick said he called his grandmother, Barbara Baker, at the home she and his mother shared in Duluth. She reassured him she had called police and had the situation under control.

But the next time Derrick's phone rang, it was a neighbor of the women, saying both his mother and grandmother were dead.

"You [police] come for a suicide attempt and start mowing people down," Derrick said. "I don't understand.

"They say my grandmother tried to step in the way to prevent Mom from shooting the cop," he said. "But there is no way my grandmother could be faster than a bullet.

"They shot Mom three times in the stomach. That's a little excessive."

Baker, 74, died at the family's home. Schwartz, 51, was rushed to the hospital, where she died.

On Wednesday, Derrick, police investigators and others were trying to determine how the tragedy unfolded.

Schwartz had said she wanted police to kill her, Gwinnett Police spokeswoman Cpl. Illana Spellman said.

"Suicide by cop" is not uncommon, particularly among women involved in officer-involved shootings, according to those who have studied the phenomenon.

But the officer responding to Tracey Drive at about 9 p.m. Tuesday didn't know anything about such a wish, Spellman said.

Police haven't identified the officer, but they say that all she knew was that a woman was threatening suicide.

When she arrived, the 10-year veteran began talking with Baker. During that conversation, Schwartz came downstairs and pointed a gun at the officer, police said.

The officer fired, striking both women several times, police said.

Spellman couldn't confirm if the grandmother stepped into the officer's line of fire or how many shots were fired. She said the officer didn't have all the information and felt threatened.

"There is no way that the officer was expecting for the daughter to point a gun at her," Spellman said. "[The officer] was shaking last night, she was upset about what happened."

Investigators have placed the officer on administrative leave as they hope to learn more from a 911 call and an autopsy.

Police have said that Baker told officers Penny Schwartz had taken her medication, in addition to illegal drugs.

Whatever his mother took or said, it still can't explain to Derrick Schwartz why his grandmother ended up dead.

Al Sherrer, who lives at the end of a long driveway next door, didn't know about the shooting until a police officer knocked on his door.

"I feel sorry for the lady cop. She didn't know what was going on," said Sherrer, 77. "Penny had some troubles and Ms. Baker ...worked all the time to take care of Penny."

Baker worked at Home Depot and was the sole caregiver for her daughter. Penny was on disability and unable to work, her son said.

The mother and daughter lived on the cul-de-sac and worked hard to keep their lawn well-manicured. Baker cared for her flowers and cat, said Paula Wisniewski, Derrick's girlfriend.

When Derrick arrived from Chicago on Wednesday afternoon, he picked up the cat from a shelter and drove to the house he grew up in.

Flowers and cards from neighbors sat at the door.

He said the death of a friend in a car wreck a few weeks ago could have caused his mother to take extra medication.

"It's a really a bad situation. I didn't even know my mom had a gun," he said. "Something could have been done besides what happened."

http://www.ajc.com/news/deaths-shake-up-both-98517.html?cxtype=rss_new
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