One woman sustained gunshot wounds late Wednesday night on I-10 West near the South Carrollton Avenue interchange in New Orleans, and a second woman was injured by means other than gunfire. Both were taken to the hospital, and the New Orleans Police Department says the investigation remains ongoing.
The shooting happened around 11:55 p.m. on September 2, according to WDSU. One woman sustained gunshot wounds, while the second injured woman's harm was described only as not directly caused by gunfire, per the same report. NOPD has not released the identities or current medical conditions of the victims.
Police Were Sent to the Wrong Side of Town First
Detectives' response to the shooting was complicated from the start. NOPD initially received a report of gunfire in the 8700 block of Chef Menteur Highway in New Orleans East, only to later determine that the actual shooting had occurred on I-10 West at South Carrollton Avenue, according to WWL-TV. The report involved two different locations. NOPD detectives are asking anyone with information about the shooting to call 504-658-6010, the station reports.
This isn't the first time this stretch of interstate has turned violent. The I-10 West corridor near the South Carrollton Avenue interchange saw a similar incident in June 2022, when a female driver was critically wounded in what police identified as a deliberate, targeted shooting, per the same account.
Highway Shootings Persist Even as Citywide Violence Falls
The Wednesday night shooting lands amid a broader, and somewhat contradictory, safety picture in New Orleans. Overall major violent crime in Orleans Parish — a category that includes homicides, nonfatal shootings, carjackings, and armed robberies — declined 18% year-to-date through August 30, according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission. Mid-year figures from the commission and NOPD also showed homicides dropping between 22% and 24% through late June compared with the same period in 2025, while non-fatal shootings citywide were down 20% year-to-date as of July, even as the Orleans Justice Center has a stated 1,250-inmate limit.
Despite those citywide declines, interstate gun violence has remained a persistent and highly visible problem. Crime watchdogs and police recorded at least 30 people shot on interstates and highways in New Orleans during 2022 alone, with the majority of those incidents happening along I-10, according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission.
New Cameras and Drones Aim to Track Down Shooters
Surveillance technology is used generally to track people or vehicles and monitor wanted suspects in New Orleans.
On September 1, the day before this shooting, NOPD and its law enforcement partners announced results from the 2026 Operation Golden Eagle. The department also launched a public Drone Dashboard that same day, part of its rollout of Drone as First Responder technology designed to speed up scene response and surveillance across the city.
Whether detectives have recovered footage from cameras near the South Carrollton exit, and whether Wednesday's shooting stemmed from road rage or a targeted dispute, remain open questions NOPD has not yet answered publicly. The investigation into the shooting continues.
