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UPDATE: Chico Police Launch Investigation into Far-Left Nurse’s Verbal Attack on Elderly Target Employee – Fundraiser for Victim Jeanie Closes in on 100K!

December 17, 2025

Smiling older woman in a store wearing a red shirt, surrounded by clothing displays and products.

Smiling older woman in a store wearing a red shirt, surrounded by clothing displays and products.

Nearly $100,000 has been raised for the victim in a shocking video that went viral this week, after being uncovered initially by The Gateway Pundit, showing a far-left activist and nurse, Michelea Ponce, unleashing a tirade against an elderly Target employee simply for wearing a Charlie Kirk “Freedom” shirt while she was working.

The GiveSendGo fundraiser launched by this reporter to send Jeanie on vacation (or possibly retire) was at $94,000 just before noon on Wednesday.

The incident, which occurred in a Target store in Chico, California, has sparked widespread outrage, calls for Ponce’s firing, and now an active police investigation.

In the video, posted by Ponce to TikTok under her now-private handle @motherofballers, she confronts the elderly woman, now identified as 72-year-old Jeanie, as she stocks baby clothes on the shelves.

The Gateway Pundit is not releasing Jeanie’s last name at this time for privacy reasons.

Ponce demands to know why Jeanie is wearing the shirt, repeatedly calling her “f**king stupid” and accusing her of supporting a “racist.”

Jeanie remains remarkably calm throughout, explaining that Target employees may wear any red shirt and correcting Ponce by stating that Kirk is not racist. Ponce escalates by demanding to speak to a manager, declaring the shirt “unacceptable,” while Jeanie politely wishes her a nice day and walks away.

Within 20 minutes of Gateway Pundit publishing the initial report about the incident, Ponce locked down all of her social media channels.

The outpouring of support for Jeanie was swift. Turning Point USA even offered to fly Jeanie to their upcoming AmFest and bring her up on stage.

The Gateway Pundit spoke with Jeanie and her daughter. She cannot attend the event in two days, but was very appreciative of all the support and asked that we “send hugs” to everyone.

The timing of this outpouring of love for her was incredible.

According to her daughter, Jeanie has not had the easiest life. Monday was the 12th anniversary of her husband’s death by suicide, after a long battle with illness and oncoming dementia. She now passionately works to raise awareness of suicide prevention options.

Ponce, a nurse employed at Enloe Health in Chico, a nonprofit healthcare system, has a history of controversial social media posts, including a now-private TikTok video in which she claimed people in her town believe she has a “hit list.”

In a significant update, the Chico Police Department announced on Facebook that they are actively investigating the viral video.

Their statement reads: “The Chico Police Department is aware of a video circulating online depicting a verbal confrontation inside a local business. We are actively investigating the incident with our local partners.”

Residents have reported that this isn’t the first time Ponce has been accused of causing trouble, with complaints about her previous bullying behavior and social media antics being directed at Enloe Health.

There also appears to be a record of domestic violence calls to her home.

Images of her husband, Jose Ponce, have also surfaced, including one in which he is posed next to a car with Charlie Kirk stickers while holding his fingers to his throat.

Ponce’s employer, Enloe Health, responded to the controversy in a statement posted to Facebook. Many reached out concerned about how Ponce treats patients in their care.

The statement read in full:

The Chico Police Department is investigating a social media post on the personal account of an Enloe Health employee. We are deeply concerned about the tenor of this post and the response it is creating from individuals of all political persuasions.

We ask for patience and calm as we conduct our own internal investigation of this matter. In the meantime, we are relying on the expertise of the Chico Police Department to investigate any potential criminal activity or threats related to it.

Currently, extremely high call volumes related to this post are overwhelming Enloe’s switchboard and clinic phone lines, negatively impacting our patients’ ability to reach clinical staff.

If you wish to share a comment with Enloe Health related to this employee’s social media post, please email us at share@enloe.org or call 530-332-9818 and leave a message.

Thank you for helping us ensure patients who need medical treatment can reach a caregiver.

The Gateway Pundit will be continuing to monitor the situation and provide updates as they arise.

The post UPDATE: Chico Police Launch Investigation into Far-Left Nurse’s Verbal Attack on Elderly Target Employee – Fundraiser for Victim Jeanie Closes in on 100K! appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.