Two attorneys representing the Rolesville Police Department were shot outside the old Wake County courthouse in downtown Raleigh on Friday morning, and police later charged a 57-year-old woman with two counts of attempted first-degree murder.

Gwendolyn White, 57, of Raleigh, was accused in the shootings of Mary Harris and Jeffrey Whitley, both attorneys with Fox Rothschild, a national law firm with offices in Raleigh. Harris’ father said early Friday evening that she was in stable condition and recovering from surgery.

Raleigh Chief of Police Rico Boyce said the suspect became belligerent in court before the violence. After White left the courthouse, Boyce said, she returned to her car, got a handgun and fired at the attorneys as they exited the building. The Town of Rolesville said the two lawyers were shot outside the Wake County Courthouse, and Fox Rothschild said it was deeply saddened and was supporting its colleagues after the shooting.

Court records show Harris and Whitley had been representing Rolesville Police in a 4-year-old case involving officer-worn body camera video. Court filings also show the hearing was emotional for White because she says the contents of that video were tied to her mother’s death last year. That connection helps explain why the case, which on paper was a civil dispute over records and evidence, had become intensely personal for her.

The shooting unfolded at a place that is supposed to stand apart from the conflict that brought the parties there in the first place. Raleigh District Attorney Lorrin Freeman called it the beginning of the judicial process and said prosecutors would continue diligently to seek justice in the matter. She added that courts are meant to be where conflict is addressed peacefully and that threats against courts, judges and attorneys have become too common.

Wiley Nickel said the courthouse should be a safe place for victims, witnesses, law enforcement, court employees and all those seeking justice. He also said Wake County is growing rapidly and needs more investment in public safety, including additional officers downtown and around the courthouse. The Town of Rolesville said Fox Rothschild has represented the town for decades, and while the attorneys are not town employees, the incident was deeply disturbing.

The immediate question now is less about what happened in the parking lot than about what comes next inside the courtroom. With White charged and Harris still recovering, the case has moved from a civil dispute over a body-camera video into a criminal proceeding that will test how the courts respond when a hearing becomes the setting for gunfire.