http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,19455479-23109,00.html

Judge shot in courthouse

June 13, 2006

A JUDGE had been shot and a woman on his staff hit by shrapnel in a courthouse at the foot of the Sierra mountain range in the US state of Nevada, police said today.

Washoe County Family Court Judge Chuck Weller was in his third-floor chambers today when he was hit by a bullet that appeared to have been fired from outside the building in the city of Reno, according to police.
"Judge Weller is conscious, talking and with family in the hospital," Reno police Officer Fred Riglesberger said.

Annie Allison, who works for the judge, was hit in the arm, neck and hip with shrapnel, Reno police officer Debbie Kuzanek said.

"She received superficial wounds," Officer Kuzanek said. "She is fine."

Judge Weller remained under care in a local hospital while police shut down the courthouse and swept the downtown area for the gunman.

A single shot hit the 53-year-old judge, who was near a glass window or wall, Officer Riglesberger said.
Along with hunting for the mysterious gunman, police were trying to deduce how many shots were fired, and from where, Officer Kuzanek said.

Police were scrambling to determine whether the attack was the work of a sniper, Officer Riglesberger told AFP.

"Police believe that the shot that hit the judge came from the outside, but we can't be sure on that yet," Officer Kuzanek said. "We don't even know how many shots might have been fired."

Court records were also being reviewed to determine whether the shooting was linked to any of the notoriously emotional cases handled in family court, Officer Kuzanek told AFP.

A jurist interviewed by reporters in the aftermath said that the shot might have been fired from across a river bordering the courthouse and appeared to have blasted in through a glass wall.

Teams of officers cordoned off portions of the city's downtown and were searching parking garages and other locations in an effort to track down the shooter, Officer Riglesberger said.