‘He could have killed us’: Young mother says Dollar General shooter told her to ‘run’ if she wanted to live

Scott Johnson, Reporter/weekend anchor

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A young mother recalls the moment she thought was going to be her last when she was trapped in the Dollar General with her 2-year-old daughter and a 21-year-old shooter, who killed three people in a racially-motivated attack.

Mercedez Jones was shopping for art supplies on Saturday with her daughter when gunshots started to ring out in the store.

“I didn’t care if he shot me, just not my baby,” Jones recalled. “The last moments I had with her, she was being bad.”

Jones said immediately she thought about protecting her daughter. At first, she didn’t know what was happening but she grabbed her daughter and started toward the back of the store to hide with some older women.

“I didn’t know the nature of the crime at the time. All I knew was I got to get my baby out of here,” Jones said.

Jones’ first glimpse of Ryan Palmeter was when he came behind the store.

“He was in military clothes, had this bulletproof vest and the biggest gun I’ve ever seen strapped to his shoulders,” Jones said.

Then, Jones said, Palmeter walked up to her and three other women who worked at the store.

“Everyone else jumped, but I couldn’t. I had a baby. So, therefore, we were begging for our lives,” Jones said. “I fell begging for mine, blocking my baby with my body.”

Jones said Palmeter told the women, “If you don’t want me to shoot you, run.”

Jones ran with her daughter clutched close to her as she was trying to escape but she fell, skinning her knees.

Jones escaped to a nearby property and eventually police came to find her.

“I was scared to go with the police afterward when they came to the apartment,” Jones said. “I was scared to go with them because they had the same gun wrapped around their shoulder. I was like, you look like him.”

One issue Jones said she struggled with was getting emergency assistance to heal from the trauma caused by the horrific tragedy. The family has called multiple agencies around Jacksonville looking for help but hasn’t been able to find any for their situation.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.