Sheriff speaks after road rage shooting leaves mother dead, infant in critical condition

HARDIN COUNTY, Tenn. — We have more details following a road rage incident that led to the death of a young mom and her child being shot.

Sunday evening, special agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation joined deputies with the Hardin County Sheriff’s Department to investigate a homicide that occurred at the 100 block of Emmaus Way in Hardin County.

According to Sheriff Alexander, it all began over a highway dispute a few miles before the initial scene of the accident on the 100 block of Emmaus Way in the county just after 4 p.m.

“When officers arrived, they found two victims that had been injured by a gunshot. They did medical care on them until EMS arrived and got them out of the scene. During the investigation we ended up finding a suspect that had fired the shots into the vehicle. From our understanding, the incident began out on Highway 64 in just a classic old road rage. Somebody cut somebody off, or something like that, and it pursued about four or five miles before they turned into Emmaus Way and the incident occurred,” said Sheriff Alexander.

The TBI says Zoe Johnson was killed and her three-year-old child was also wounded. According to Sheriff Alexander, the three-year-old is still being held at the Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital in critical condition.

The family of Zoe Johnson has a GoFundMe created to help with with medical and funeral expenses. Click here for more information or to make a donation.

Sheriff Alexander points out a key factor that helped determine the suspect of the investigation.

“We started canvasing the neighborhood and found a camera with a photo of the vehicle on it,” said Sheriff Alexander.

On Monday, Clint Newton was arrested by Hardin Co. Sheriff Dept. He is being charged with second-degree murder along with other charges.

SEE ALSO: UPDATE: Suspect arrested, victims identified in Hardin Co. shooting (Dec. 15, 2024)

Stay with us on air and online for possible updates as we continue to follow this case.

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