Louisville woman recovering after being shot 7 times by former co-worker

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Louisville woman is recovering after she was shot seven times during her shift at a downtown CVS.

Aeisha Grainger is a manager at the CVS pharmacy off 4th Street and Muhammad Ali Boulevard. While she was working on Tuesday, March 21, Grainger said a former co-worker walked into the store, wandered around for several minutes, was asked to leave, but instead opened fire.

Grainger was shot in and around her leg seven times. A customer was grazed by a bullet. Police said one other customer and three other employees were inside the store at the time of the shooting, but they weren't hurt.

"I thought I was dying, I was sitting on the floor, I kept saying, 'I was dying,'" Grainger said.

Grainger said due to numbness, she's unable to move her right foot, but she is counting her blessings. She is alive and able to continue taking care of her young daughter.

"I think God definitely was with me on the floor that day to be able to be a mother to her still and able to live a life," Grainger said. 

Grainger expects to move to Frazier Rehab, and spend two weeks in in-patient rehab then continue out-patient rehab.

Anthony Howard, 25, was arrested and charged with attempted murder, assault, wanton endangerment and criminal mischief, according to an arrest citation. 

Police referred to Howard as Grainger's "former romantic partner," but Grainger said that's not true. She said they were only co-workers who went to lunch one time. 

After being shot, Grainger remembers what Howard did and said to her.

"The words that came out of his mouth were, 'You broke my heart,' and I was thinking, how did I break your heart when I wasn't with you?" Grainger said. "He kissed me on the forehead and then walked away."

Grainger hopes to return to work at CVS, but will consider transferring to another location.

She believes what happened to her is a reflection of Howard's mental health, and that it shows how more help needs to be made available to people who are suffering.

“People don’t deserve what I went through and what other people go through every day and guns are not to be used as, you know, toys or games," Grainger said.

Howard is expected in court Friday morning. 

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