Deputies open fire on man wielding a pellet gun in NW Harris County

Suspect brandished weapon that turned out to be pellet gun

By Miya Shay

(1/19/07 - KTRK/HOUSTON) - A northwest Harris County man was shot by authorities Friday morning just moments after he walked out of his home. That suspect was shot when authorities say he pointed a pellet gun at them.

Shortly before the lunch hour, neighbors along Henniker at Hampton Falls heard several gunshots on their normally quiet street.

"I just heard the gun shots and there were a lot of police cars," recalled neighbor Joan Dixon. "Everybody was outside. I just took off, because I was so scared, so frightened."

A man was shot several times by Precinct 5 deputies. He was taken to a hospital by Life Flight. Deputies say it all began when they responded to a dropped 911 phone call.

"He came out of the house with what appeared to be some type of weapon, running towards the deputies," said Captain Michael Coleman with the Precinct 5 Constable's Office. "That when there were shots fired."

Four deputies fired multiple shots, hitting the man and shattering at least one patrol car's window. Investigators recovered what turned out to be a small pellet gun in the driveway. But exactly how many shots were fired at the man remains unclear.

Neighbors say this doesn't sound like the man they know who lives next door. "He was always real nice," said neighbor Becky Blanton. "He's always real nice. His little dog would come out and he'd get him. He always said hello and stuff. He was just a real sweet man."

Neighbors say the man moved to the neighborhood about five years ago. Family and friends came to visit, and he seemed perfectly normal.

The sheriff's department and the Precinct 5 Constable's Office are investigating.

 

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