A woman who fired shots outside KTRK Channel 13 is dealing with deadly conduct and evading arrest charges.
Michelle Monique Burks was outside of the station's security fence when she opened fire on the building at about 9 a.m. on Thursday. She made her first court appearance on Friday — and the judge immediately raised her bond to $40,000 after hearing details of her strange behavior.
Witnesses say Burks pulled up in front of the KTRK station — located at 3310 Bissonnet — in her silver Chevrolet Camaro and appeared to be recording the station with her cellphone.
She posted the results of a pap smear to her Facebook page, and referenced people "who are defaming" her.
"I saw this silver Camaro looking car just, you know, right there with their flashers on on the side of the road and it looked like the lady was just holding up her phone and videotaping the building," Katherine Koinis told KHOU 11 News. "I thought it was very strange, but didn't really think anything of it."
Burks then pulled out a gun and began shooting, firing four shots into four cars and another five shots into an upstairs office in which a woman was working at the time.
"We did recover casings from the parking lot, we also recovered casings from the building," HPD Sgt. Julie Pleasant told KHOU. "Nobody was hurt, nobody sustained injuries."
Following a short car chase, authorities stopped Burks in the 5200 block of Buffalo Speedway. She was compliant with police as she was taken into custody.
A search of her vehicle revealed a semi-automatic handgun with a capacity of 12 rounds.
Authorities believe Burks may be connected to another incident which occurred six weeks ago at the KTRK station when several cars were struck by bullets. Police are investigating the connection.
She faces one count of deadly conduct and another of evading arrest. Initially Burks was held on a $5,000 bond for each charge, although the judge doubled the bond on the charge of evading arrest to $10,000 and increased the bond on the charge of deadly conduct to $30,000. The suspect requested a court appointed attorney.
The motive for the shooting remains unclear, but Burks was known for posting strange things on social media sites. On Thursday morning, she posted the results of a pap smear to her Facebook page, and referenced people "who are defaming" her. KTRK also reports that Burke posted rambling, paranoid demands to remove cameras and listening devices from her home.
If convicted of the charges, Burks could face up to 10 years in prison.
Burke, who fired shots on Thursday at KTRK's station on Bissonnet, appeared in court today for the first time.
