Young Girl Shot and Killed During Domestic Argument

An 8-year-old girl has been shot and killed, caught in the middle of a domestic argument between a man and his estranged wife.

Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a report of a domestic related shooting at 244 Ridings Road in northern Spartanburg County Wednesday afternoon about 3:00 PM. Upon arrival deputies found 8-year-old Heather Brooke Center, dead from gunshot wounds, lying on the ground outside the residence.The child would have been a third grader in the next school year at Reidville Elementary, according to family.The girl’s aunt told us, “We don’t know why this happened…Why would somebody want to hurt a baby…she didnt do anything to nobody.“

Witnesses told deputies that the suspect, identified as Ricky Lee Blackwell, 49 years old, of 248 Ridings Road, Chesnee, fled the scene just moments before they arrived, running in the direction of 248 Ridings Road.