FORT WORTH -- A 17-year Fort Worth police veteran Tuesday recounted being shot without warning while investigating a suspicious person report last summer.
Officer Clifford Hankins testified during the punishment phase for Joe Nathan Haywood that he attempted to stop Haywood on East Berry Street and that twice the man ignored Hankins' instructions to stop walking and remove his hands from his pockets.Then, Haywood suddenly wheeled around and "there was a big old gun pointed at me," Hankins said.Haywood, 27, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault on a public servant Monday afternoon. He faces 15 years to life in prison, according to the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office.District Attorney Joe Shannon is trying the case with prosecutor Greg Miller in Judge Sharen Wilson's courtroom. Attorney Tim Moore is defending Haywood.Haywood, in a brown suit jacket, sat with his hands clasped and listened as Hankins described the shooting to the jury. Since age 18, Haywood has been convicted 11 times on burglary, assault and drug charges, Tarrant County court records show.Hankins, the neighborhood police officer for a stretch of East Berry just east of Interstate 35W, said that shortly before the July 7, 2011, shooting he had received a call on his cellphone from a resident who reported a man walking around in a black-hooded sweatshirt.The resident, who was active in the neighborhood citizen's patrol and who also testified Tuesday, said he found the man's outfit "out of place" because the temperature was about 105 degrees. The man was walking around a Wells Fargo bank, he said.Hankins said he drove to the area and the resident directed him toward the suspicious man in front of Robinson's Bar-B-Que, 1028 E. Berry St. Hankins said he stopped his patrol car in front of Haywood and twice gave him instructions to stop. He estimated that he was about six to 10 feet from Haywood.When Haywood pulled his gun, Hankins testified, he turned and lunged behind his patrol car, but the bullet struck his lower back. From behind his car, he pulled his gun from his duty belt but saw that the shooter had already fled. So he radioed for help.As he waited, the gunshot wound wasn't the only thing causing him pain, he said."I was on my hands and knees and that concrete was hot," he testified.His patrol car engine was still running and blowing heat on him until a passer-by finally turned it off. The owner of Robinson's brought out a rug to shield his skin from the searing pavement.Haywood was arrested a short time later after officers found him hiding in brush, Shannon said during his opening statement.After the shooting, Hankins underwent surgery at John Peter Smith Hospital. The bullet had torn through a nerve that extends from his back to the inside of his leg, he said. Surgeons removed part of an intestine.For a time, he relied on a walker and a cane to get around, he said. He was in physical therapy until May and walked into court without assistance.Hankins said he now works an office job at the police department and the damaged nerve still causes him leg problems."Feels like I'm dragging around a boat anchor," he said.Under cross-examination, Hankins agreed with Moore that Haywood didn't appear to be doing anything illegal when he tried to stop him. Moore declined to give an opening statement.Shannon told jurors that the evidence warranted a "lengthy" prison sentence.Alex Branch, 817-390-7689Twitter: @albranch1Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
