Update: Woman seriously injured, did not die in officer-involved shooting on I-40 near Benson

A woman who was initially assumed to be dead is now said to be in critical condition after an “armed confrontation” with law enforcement officers Saturday morning on Interstate 40 near Benson, according to the State Highway Patrol.

A statement released Saturday evening identified the woman as Tina Renee Medlin, 50, of Raleigh.

Sgt. Michael Baker with the Highway Patrol said a trooper responded to a single-car accident on the westbound side of the interstate and found “a female lying on the westbound lanes of I-40, armed with a firearm” at about 6:30 a.m. Saturday.

Trooper J. L. Taylor, a 16-year veteran assigned to Johnston County, was involved in the shooting and has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, the Highway Patrol said.

Taylor and Johnston County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Taylor Davis returned fire after being shot at by Medlin, according to the Highway Patrol.

It’s unclear exactly what happened that caused the officers to shoot the woman. Medlin was transported to WakeMed, officials said.

Jeff Caldwell, with the sheriff’s office, said the State Bureau of Investigation is in charge of the investigation – standard procedure when law enforcement officers are involved in a shooting.

Dozens of law enforcement vehicles lined I-40 at the scene Saturday, just east of Godwin Lake Road near Benson.

Authorities taped off a perimeter the size of about half a football field extending from the guard wire just into a wooded area off the side of the westbound lanes Saturday morning. Inside the police tape was a white GMC Yukon XL that crashed and came to rest facing the roadway.

Troopers and investigators from the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office and State Bureau of Investigation worked the scene Saturday piecing together what happened.

According to a Department of Transportation incident alert, police closed the road at 7:11 a.m. Saturday.

I-40 westbound was still closed around Exit 341 as of midday Saturday, according to the DOT. The DOT has a detour set up to route drivers off Exit 341, taking N.C. 50 to N.C. 96 and back to I-40.

Caldwell said the deputy was also put on administrative leave, standard procedure when an officer is involved in a shooting.

This story was originally published July 8, 2017 at 10:29 AM with the headline "Update: Woman seriously injured, did not die in officer-involved shooting on I-40 near Benson."