Former SWAT officer arrested after SWAT standoff at his Fort Worth home
A former member of the Mesquite Police Department’s tactical team fired a gun inside his far north Fort Worth house earlier this month, imperiling his wife and another person and prompting a SWAT team to assemble on the property to get him outside, according to records produced by police and court records filed by the district clerk’s office.
Alexander Smith, 54, barricaded himself in a room inside the house in the 3800 block of Chisos Rim Trail on May 1, according to a Fort Worth Police Department spokesperson.
Earlier, as Smith erupted, other people got out the house and contacted police, according to the records. It is not clear precisely what number of people beyond Smith and his wife were originally inside the house.
During a standoff of about four hours, police officers used a loud hailing system. When SWAT released chemical irritants, Smith surrendered and was taken into custody without incident, according to the police department spokesperson.
A call came in on the matter at 8:23 p.m. Smith was driven to jail about 12:40 a.m.
Smith threatened his wife with imminent bodily injury and used a gun during the commission of the threat, the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office has alleged. The office charged Smith with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The case is pending.
Police booked Smith on suspicion of deadly conduct, an offense that applies when a person knowingly discharges a firearm at or in the direction of a person, building or vehicle and is reckless as to whether the building or vehicle is occupied.
Smith was released from jail on a $3,000 bond.
Smith was employed by the city of Mesquite, at its police department, from November 2007 to December 2018, according to the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.
He was earlier employed by the Mabank Police Department and by sheriff’s offices in Dallas and Kaufman counties.
A Mesquite Police Department spokesperson confirmed that Smith was a member of the department’s SWAT team during a portion of his employment.
Kathy Lowthorp, the defense attorney whom Smith retained, did not respond to a reporter’s inquiry.
This story was originally published May 21, 2026 at 4:58 PM.
