A Friday night custody dispute inside Kids Empire in Salt Lake City ended with a woman shooting her ex-husband in front of multiple families, turning a children’s play space into an active crime scene. The shooting happened about 6:40 p.m., and police said the man was rushed to the hospital in critical condition.

Police said the woman used her own gun during the dispute involving two young children. A good Samaritan moved in and disarmed her before a responding Salt Lake City police officer arrived, and the woman was taken into custody.

The shooting unfolded inside the indoor playground while families were still there, a detail that underscored how quickly a private conflict became a public emergency. Multiple witnesses were taken in for questioning as investigators worked to piece together what led to the gunfire.

The man is believed by police to be the woman’s ex-husband, and the dispute centered on custody of the children. That connection is now the core of the case, because investigators must determine exactly how the confrontation escalated inside a crowded business where children were supposed to be playing.

Kids Empire remained closed while the investigation continued, and that closure reflects how much evidence still has to be gathered before the scene can be fully cleared. For now, the question that matters most has a clear answer: the man is still fighting for his life, and the shooting is being investigated as a violent custody dispute that spilled into a public place.