Pipe-wielding suspect fatally shot by police in southeast Houston

Man threatened his mother, then police

(7/21/07 - HOUSTON) - One man was killed and a Houston police officer wounded in a shooting that occurred after the man attacked a police car with a pipe before authorities said he turned on officers.

The shooting occurred Saturday night after officers responded to a call from a woman in south Houston who said her son had threatened her with a knife, police spokesman Gabe Ortiz said. The wounded officer was struck by a gunshot fired by another officer. His injury was not life threatening, Ortiz said.

The 39-year-old man, who was not immediately identified, carried a pipe at least 3 feet long with a chunk of concrete at its base, Ortiz said. He refused an order to stop and a shot from a stun gun had no effect, said Ortiz, who wasn't sure if the man was struck by the stun gun.

Police said the man started pummeling the windshield and windows of the patrol car with the pipe, which broke as he hit the car. He threw a piece of the pipe at other officers when they arrived at the scene.

Ortiz said the man made "threatening statements" when a fifth officer arrived. Ortiz said in a story for Sunday's online edition of the Houston Chronicle that officers were trying to determine how many times officers fired, how many times the man was hit and where he was struck.

Police were unsure whether the mother witnessed the shooting.

Police Capt. Bruce Williams said the shooting would be investigated by the department's internal affairs division and the Harris County District Attorney's Office.

 

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) (Copyright © 2007, KTRK-TV)