Love Field shooting suspect found not guilty by reason of insanity
DALLAS - A woman accused of firing a gun inside Dallas Love Field Airport last year was found not guilty by reason of insanity.
Then 37-year-old Portia Odufuwa pulled out a handgun near the Southwest Airlines ticket counter at Dallas Love Field, firing shots into the ceiling near a ticket counter in July 2022.
Odufuwa the pointed the gun at a bystander and a Dallas police officer, firing in the officer's direction before he shot her in the leg.
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No one else was hurt. But the shooting caused a panic at the airport, and it impacted several flights.
Odufuwa was charged with aggravated assault on a peace officer.
Last week, Dallas County judge Stephanie Huff found Odufuwa not guilty by reason of insanity.
"It is surprising, very rare that a judge would find someone not guilty due to insanity," said Toby Shook, a criminal defense attorney not connected to the case.
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Shook says Huff is a well respected judge who previously worked as a prosecutor.
"Judge Huff is considered one of the best judges in the courthouse," he said.
According to court records, both sides agreed to waive a jury trial and have Judge Huff render a ruling.
The judge relied on testimony from a court-appointed psychologist, who did an examination of Odufuwa and found her to be clinically insane.
The prosecution and defense accepted her diagnosis.
"It’s one of those rare circumstances where the evidence, after they looked at it, [they] thought it was pretty overwhelming that this woman was legally insane and had serious mental illness," said Shook.
Dallas police say the gun Odufuwa used was not registered to her.
Records show she has been prohibited from owning a firearm since 2018 because of a prior criminal history that includes arrests for bank robbery, arson, and false reporting.
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Online court records show some of those cases were dismissed after Odufuwa was found incompetent to stand trial. She also has a history of mental health evaluations following arrests.
Despite being found not guilty by reason of insanity, Shook says Odufuwa won't be out walking the streets, at least for now.
"She’ll be placed in a mental institution for at least 30 days, if not much longer," said Shook.
Shook says if and when Odufuwa is released from a mental hospital, she will still be under strict monitoring by the judge.
That will likely include regular court appearances and monitoring of her medications.
FOX 4 reached out to the district attorney's office for comment, but we have not heard back.