Officer Shoots Man In Traffic Stop
Driver Shot In Neck, Expected To Survive

POSTED: Thursday, February 25, 2010
UPDATED: 6:25 pm CST February 25, 2010

HOUSTON -- A police officer shot a man during a traffic stop in south Houston late Wednesday, KPRC Local 2 reported.

Houston police said a driver did not signal while making a turn, so Officer Brenton Green tried to pull him over. The driver, Steven Guidry, initially refused to stop, but he finally did near Pederson and Noel streets at about 11 p.m., police said. Green ordered Guidry to get out of the pickup truck, but he refused, police said.

Investigators said Green, a 15-year veteran, saw the driver rummaging through the pickup. Green walked up to the vehicle, opened the door and pulled the man out, police said.

Green and Guidry got into a struggle, officials said. "The suspect reaches for his waistband, as though he's going to pull a weapon," HPD spokesman Victor Senties said. "The office, in fear for his life, discharges his duty weapon." Guidry suffered a gunshot wound to the neck. He was taken to Ben Taub Hospital for treatment. He is expected to survive. Guidry's family and friends visited the scene Thursday afternoon. Jesse Sanders, who was in the vehicle at the time of the incident, said he did not see a struggle.

"He parked the truck so it wouldn't get towed. He shut it off and was ready to go to jail. He pulled him out of the truck and started shooting," Sanders said. Sanders said Guidry knew he had a warrant out for his arrest, but was ready to face the consequences. A search of his criminal history showed his last criminal activity was a theft of between $50 and $500 in 2007 for which he pleaded guilty. Police did not confirm whether any other weapons were present. Green was on patrol without a partner.