Paper: Houston Chronicle

Date: Mon 01/28/2008

Section: B Page: 3 Edition: 3 STAR

Deputy constable still critical after several surgeries / He hasn't been able to talk since suspect shot him

By MIKE GLENN

Staff

A Harris County deputy constable remained in critical condition Sunday, unable to tell investigators how he got involved in a gunfight with a suspect that left the other man dead, authorities said.

A day after Saturday's shooting, Precinct 6 Cpl. Harry Thielepape, 57, had undergone several surgeries at Memorial Hermann Hospital to repair damage from multiple gunshot wounds he suffered about 2:30 p.m. at the Chancellor Apartments, 311 Parramatta Lane.

"We haven't been able to talk to him (Thielepape) at all," said Harris County Sheriff's Lt. John Denholm, commander of the department's homicide division.

"It's kind of `minute-by-minute.' He's not out of the woods," said Danny Perez, a Precinct 6 spokesman.

Perez said Thielepape, who has an adult son and a girlfriend, is scheduled to undergo additional surgeries this morning.

"The gunshots were at close range, and now the doctors are working to repair the damage," Perez said.

Part-time security job

Thielepape was working a part-time security job at the north Harris County apartment complex, officials said, when he apparently became suspicious about Jesus Gilbert Reyna, 21, who was wanted on a pair of Class C misdemeanor warrants.

Thielepape is assigned to a unit at the Precinct 6 constable's office that is charged with apprehending felony suspects and parole violators, officials said.

"He had probably been looking for the guy," Denholm said.

Thielepape was not in uniform but wore his badge on a chain around his neck and a protective vest, officials said.

Witnesses reported seeing him pull the unmarked police car in front of Reyna to block him, detectives said.

"They just saw him stop the guy. They don't know the purpose of the stop," Denholm said.

There is no indication that Thielepape told his dispatchers about the initial stop of Reyna, officials said.

"He (Reyna) wasn't somebody that was known to our department," Perez said.

Thielepape took Reyna into custody after finding marijuana and a handgun on him, authorities said. He was handcuffed and placed in the backseat of the unmarked police car.

A veteran with more than 10 years on the force, Thielepape likely would have secured the handcuffs behind Reyna's back, officials said.

"That's standard" procedure, Perez said.

After the gunfight that left him dead, Reyna was found lying in the parking lot with the handcuffs in front, officials said.

"It's not that hard to get them in front of you if you're limber," Denholm said.

No eyewitnesses

Detectives say Thielepape may have spotted Reyna struggling with the handcuffs and opened the back door to check that he was still secured.

Reyna was able to grab Thielepape's service pistol and began shooting. The deputy constable moved back under fire, detectives said.

"He took cover by a car and used his backup weapon," Denholm said. "He really did a great job, considering he'd already been hit a couple of times."

Apartment residents reported hearing up to 20 gunshots fired in the exchange, but detectives said there were no witnesses to the confrontation.

Reyna was a U.S. citizen but apparently didn't live at the complex, officials said.

He had a Harris County criminal record, most recently receiving two 30-day jail sentences in January 2007 after pleading guilty to a pair of drug possession charges.

 

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