Two officers were placed on administrative leave after a 16-year-old girl was shot outside a convenience store late Wednesday night.

Police said the officers drove by the Express Market Drive-Thru, located on East Fifth and Peters avenues, at about 11:30 p.m. when they saw the teenager with a rifle, 10TV's Cara Connelly reported.

SLIDESHOW: Images From Scene

The officers got out of their cruiser and ordered the girl to drop the weapon. When she did not comply, officers opened fire, police said.

The gunfire left the teenager with wounds to her arms and back.

The girl, who was later identified as Regina Jennings, was taken to the Ohio State University Medical Center in stable condition, Connelly reported.

Sgt. Jim Gilbert of the Fraternal Order of Police said the officers were in a high-crime area. The convenience store that the girl was at had been robbed before.

"This is another situation in which our officers were faced with imminent danger and had to defend themselves," Gilbert said.

Although she did not witness the shooting, Patricia Jennings, the teen's mother, denied police accounts that her daughter was carrying a weapon.

"Why are you going to shoot a minor and she already had her hands up?" Patricia Jennings asked. "You know she had nothing on her."

Gilbert said the officers acted after seeing a concealed weapon.

"They observed this female near the front door with a weapon," Gilbert said. "They obviously gave commands and at some point in time they felt danger was imminent."
Police said charges will be filed against the teenager.

Officer Adam Hicks, the officer who shot Jennings, is a six-year veteran of the department, police said.

Hicks was placed on administrative duty while the department conducts a standard investigation, Connelly reported.

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