Category: Police Shooting

The Farmers Branch Police Department, in Texas, filed a custodial death report with the Attorney General of Texas regarding the death of Juan Manuel Moreno, Jr. Mr. Moreno was only 35 years of age at the time of his death. We have no personal knowledge of what actually occurred but are simply reporting information included in that report.

The incident occurred on June 12, 2019 at approximately 7:03 p.m. Police alleged that, at about 7:03 p.m., officers were attempting to arrest Mr. Moreno and detain two other occupants of an occupied stolen vehicle. Officers alleged that, during the incident, officers discharged their weapons after Mr. Moreno attempted to run over the officers with the stolen vehicle. Mr. Moreno was hit by gunfire and pronounced deceased within the hour. The two other vehicle occupants were detained without further incident.

The United States Constitution guarantees that people have the right to be free from use of excessive force. The 5^th Circuit Court of Appeals, which governs Constitutional claims in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi, has determined generally that there are three factors to be used when determining the reasonableness of force under the United States Constitution. First, a court will consider whether a person is fleeing. Second, a court will consider whether the crime of which the person was accused was serious. Finally, a court will consider whether the person against whom force was used was a danger to police officers or others.

The Bonham, Texas police department filed a custodial death report regarding the death of Mark Royal Gilliam. Mr. Gilliam was 63 years of age at the time of his death. Information in this post was extracted from that report, and we make no allegation of any wrongdoing against anyone.

On February 23, 2019, a Bonham police officer attempted to initiate a traffic stop for a vehicle being operated by Mr. Gilliam. Mr. Gilliam refused to stop, and a vehicle pursuit ensued. The pursuit ended at Mr. Gilliam’s residence. Body cam video indicates that two Bonham police officers repeatedly gave commands to Mr. Gilliam to raise his hands. Moreover, the video also showed Mr. Gilliam taking an aggressive stance toward the police officers, and ultimately refusing commands by quickly lowering his right hand toward a coat pocket. This resulted in one of the officers shooting Mr. Gilliam twice. Mr. Gilliam was transported to a Plano, Texas hospital, where he ultimately passed away on March 11, 2019.

The report does not indicate anything about a weapon being found on Mr. Gilliam. The Texas Rangers are conducting an investigation regarding the officer-involved shooting. The 4th Amendment to the United States Constitution requires Texas police officers to act reasonably when using deadly force.

The Port Arthur Police Department recently filed a custodial death report regarding the death of Shayne Delmair Lyons. Mr. Lyons was 35 years of age at the time of his death, and the incident occurred on December 28, 2018. We have no personal information about what occurred, but are simply providing information included in the report.

It appears that the Port Arthur Police Department failed to file the custodial death report within the 30-day window required by Texas law. We are uncertain as to why that did not occur. Moreover, the custodial death report, in the summary section, contains only one sentence: “Shayne Lyons approached an officer while displaying a machete so an officer discharged his weapon to stop the threat to his safety.” The report does, in another section, indicate that Mr. Lyons physically attempted to or in the alternative did assault an officer, and also exhibited mental health problems. No additional details about the interaction are provided in the report.

On Thursday, February 7, 2019, a Snyder, Texas police officer shot and killed a person after the police officer responded to a suspicious person call. Allegedly, an altercation began that resulted in the officer using her weapon. We will post more information once we learn of it, and we make no allegation of any wrongdoing.

News media have reported regarding the death of Darion Baker, occurring at the hands of one or more Stratford, Texas police officers, that police officers apparently shot at the vehicle which Mr. Baker was operating and in which there was a passenger.  It appears that Mr. Baker and his passenger were both from Memphis, Tennessee.  News media reported that the shots were fired during an attempt to arrest Mr. Baker and/or his passenger.  The Texas Rangers continue their investigation of this fatal shooting.  We make no allegation of any wrongdoing but are instead simply providing information.

In Bedford, Texas, on Tuesday, January 16, 2018, a suspect was allegedly fatally shot by a police officer. According to the Bedford Police Department, the suspect, who has not yet been identified, appeared to be reaching for a weapon when the alleged officer-involved shooting occurred. No police officers were injured. The Texas Rangers will be investigating the alleged deadly police shooting that occurred between Dallas and Fort Worth in Bedford.

At about 4:30 a.m., police officers responded to a call about a suspicious automobile in the parking lot of a grocery store. When officers arrived at the address on Airport Freeway, the suspect drove away. Police pursued and located the vehicle on Hurst Drive. According to police Lt. Kirk Roberts, the suspect allegedly reached for a weapon as the officers were attempting to make contact. One police officer fired his weapon, allegedly striking the suspect.

After the alleged fatal police shooting, police officers immediately administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), but they were unable to revive the suspect, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

No other details have been released, including the name of the officer involved. There was also no mention of whether or not body cameras were on officers at the time of the alleged shooting.

During the investigation of this tragic incident, the actions of the alleged shooter will be examined. There have been times when officers have been found to have acted with excessive force, and sometimes they are charged with a crime. In recent news, for instance, an officer was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the alleged March 26, 2016, fatal shooting of a 16-year-old.

As with every post on this website, we are only providing information in this post and do not make any allegation or assertion that anyone acted inappropriately or engaged in misconduct.

–Guest Contributor

On December 24, 2017, at about 9:24 p.m., the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office in Texas was asked by the Progreso Police Department to respond to a home in Progreso. When sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene, they discovered that a police-involved shooting with a Progreso police officer had allegedly already occurred.

According to witnesses at the scene, Progreso police officers were called to the Encino Street address because of a disturbance involving a man carrying a machete. Officers went to investigate. When they arrived, one police officer and the male suspect made physical contact and struggled. The police officer fired his service weapon during the struggle, and the man who had been holding a machete died at the scene. According to the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office, the police officer involved in the alleged fatal shooting incident suffered non-life threatening injuries and was transported to a nearby hospital to receive treatment. No further details about the fatal incident have been released.

The Texas Rangers will investigate the alleged police shooting. One of the issues to be determined is whether or not the deadly force used was reasonably necessary. In Texas, police officers have a right to use whatever force is necessary when they feel that they or others are in immediate danger. Another way to put it is that if they fear for their lives, using whatever force is available is allowed by law.

There was no mention of whether or not a body cam was on any of the police officers at the scene, to provide insight into exactly what happened.

As with every post on this website, we are only providing information in this post and do not make any allegation or assertion that anyone acted inappropriately or engaged in misconduct.

–Guest Contributor

Twenty-four-year-old Shaquille Rogers was killed in an alleged police-involved shooting on Tuesday, December 19, 2017, in The Colony, Texas, which is a Dallas suburb. Officers with The Colony Police Department responded to a call about a burglary at approximately 6 p.m. Their investigation ended with one suspect having fled the scene and a knife-wielding suspect allegedly being killed by police gunfire.

A news crew reported that a homeowner and her daughter were in their home when a back patio door was smashed with a cinderblock by burglars. The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, said they saw one of the men grab one of her kitchen knives from the counter. At that time, she and her daughter ran out of the house. When police officers arrived to the scene, they discovered two men inside the home.

One of the suspects ran away into a back alley. The other suspect stayed in the home. According to The Colony Police Department Officer Rick De la Cruz, police officers approached the suspect, who was later identified as Rogers. Rogers was holding a knife and walked toward the police. To defend themselves and in fear for their lives, the officers fired their service weapons. Aid was immediately rendered, but Rogers was pronounced dead at the scene.

The second suspect who ran away has not been apprehended. Police officers said they didn’t get a good enough look at the man to provide an accurate description.

No officers were injured in the incident. The alleged police shooting is being investigated by the Texas Rangers, which is standard procedure.

As with every post on this website, we are only providing information in this post and do not make any allegation or assertion that anyone acted inappropriately or engaged in misconduct.

–Guest Contributor

Information in this post was obtained from a custodial death report filed by the La Marque Police Department in Texas with the Attorney General of Texas.  We do not assert that anyone did anything wrong in this post but are simply providing information.

On or about December 3, 2017, La Marque Police Department officers were called to a scene after Gregory Hamm, 62 years of age, allegedly broke into a neighbor’s home while possessing a sword.  Mr. Hamm allegedly threatened the neighbor with the sword.  Mr. Hamm reportedly then returned to a structure that he used as a residence.  La Marque officers entered the structure with a police K-9 Dog.  Once the K-9 dog located Mr. Hamm, Mr. Hamm allegedly charged at a police officer and swung at him or her with the sword.  The officer then shot Mr. Hamm once and killed him.

Police officers may not, under the objective circumstances at the time of an occurrence, use excessive force.  They must not use deadly force if deadly force is not necessary.  If they do, then claims pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Section 1983, for violation of the United States Constitution, might be available.