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Lansford woman charged in drive-by shooting

A Lansford woman faces multiple charges related to a drive-by shooting in which at least one round entered a home last week in the borough.

Sheri Gleaton-Hawkins, 51, of 622. E. Bertsch St., remains in the Carbon County Correctional Facility in Nesquehoning in lieu of $500,000 bail.

District Judge Beth Dodson arraigned Gleaton-Hawkins on charges of two felony counts of aggravated assault; discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure, tampering with physical evidence, obstruction of law enforcement and three counts of reckless endangerment.

A preliminary hearing on the charges is scheduled Feb. 4.

According to the criminal complaint: Gleaton-Hawkins received a call on Jan. 13 from her 26-year-old son that he had been assaulted by two men in the area of the Lansford Smoke Shop at East Bertsch and Powell streets at 3:45 p.m.

Gleaton-Hawkins immediately left her home and found her son in the 300-block of West Bertsch Street. She picked him up, and they went to look for the two men that assaulted him, court papers said.

Her son knew one of the men and headed toward his home on West Abbott Street, where they saw two men walking up the street.

Gleaton-Hawkins said she sped up, because she had intended on running the two men down with her vehicle for assaulting and attempting to rob her son, court papers said.

She then returned home, and called 911 to report that her son had been assaulted at 4:10 p.m.

Before that report to 911, Lansford police received a call at 4:03 p.m. about a drive-by shooting near the intersection of West Abbott and Sharpe streets.

The caller said two men were walking west on West Abbott when a light blue sport utility vehicle came speeding up the road, traveling east toward Sharpe Street, and two gunshots were heard, court papers said. The caller also said that the incident was on video surveillance.

The men who were walking ducked behind a parked vehicle and then ran through yards toward West Water Street, court papers said, while the vehicle continued east.

The gunshots appeared to come from the vehicle, the caller reported. Lansford police were provided the surveillance footage from neighborhood cameras.

No shell casings or bullet holes were found in the area, houses or vehicles, and within minutes, Lansford police received the call about the assault on Gleaton-Hawkins’ son.

Additional officers from surrounding communities were summoned, and Lansford police noted the vehicle from the reported drive-by parked in front of Gleaton-Hawkins’ home and it was registered to her, court papers said.

Police were invited into Gleaton-Hawkins’ home and she recounted her version of the events. She denied having a firearm during the incident on West Abbott Street and further said all of her vehicle windows were closed, court papers said.

Police knew from previous dealings that Gleaton-Hawkins owns firearms, and she admitted to owning a shotgun and an assault rifle, court papers said. A weapons check revealed she also owns a Taurus .38 caliber revolver, which she told police was not in the home.

Police obtained search warrants for her vehicle, body warrants for Gleaton-Hawkins and her son, and 622 E. Bertsch St. They also got a warrant for her phone and various applications liked to her Ring Camera system in her home and dashboard camera in her vehicle.

Additional video obtained by police showed Gleaton-Hawkins in her vehicle drive past 368 W. Abbott St, and reach across her body with her right arm at the time the gunshot is heard, court papers said. The vehicle’s window was down and open.

Police located a suspected bullet hole at 368 W. Abbott St., and that a bullet appeared to enter the structure with an exit hole in the kitchen closet area. The bullet’s final resting place after ricocheting off an interior wall was unknown, court papers said.

Five minutes before police securing a search warrant for Gleaton-Hawkins’ phone, her Ring account was disabled. Officers said she knew that police wanted evidence from the device and tampered with her Ring account to obstruct the investigation.