Weatherford police officer shoots, kills suspect after car chase

A Weatherford police officer shot and killed a suspect who jumped into a patrol car after an early morning chase Tuesday, a police department release says.

The officer, who has been with the Weatherford police force for five years, was placed on administrative leave, which is department procedure.

The suspect, a 41-year-old man from Weatherford, has not been identified pending notification of his family.

The chase began at 4:16 a.m. Tuesday, when an officer tried to pull over a tan SUV for running a stop sign on Rick Williamson Memorial Highway. The suspect didn’t pull over, and a pursuit ensued, the release says.

The suspect merged onto I-20 eastbound, and then turned south onto Bethel Road. At one point, the suspect slammed on his brakes, put the SUV into reverse and rammed the front of the officer’s patrol car, according to the release.

The suspect then continued south on Bethel Road, lost control of the SUV, ran off the road and got stuck near the intersection of Bethel and Thompson Road.

After trying to get his SUV out, the suspect left the vehicle and “walked rapidly toward the driver’s side of the lead patrol unit,” the release said.

The suspect was carrying a baby seat in front of him. Officers were on the passenger side, using the patrol car for cover. When the suspect reached the patrol car, he threw the baby seat into the car and jumped into the driver’s seat, the release said.

The officer’s vehicle was still running and a weapon was within arm’s reach of the suspect, the release said. An officer shot several times through the front right passenger window of the police car.

A short time later, EMS arrived and declared the suspect dead at the scene, the release says.

The suspect had a felony warrant for his arrest for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon that had been issued before the pursuit. As with all officer-involved shooting incidents, the Texas Rangers will take the lead on the investigation, police said.

Later in the day, police received a tip that there was a gas leak at the suspect’s last known address in the 700 block of Palo Pinto Street, said Commander Chris Crawford. They arrived, found the gas leak and shut down the area for two hours, before clearing the scene.

“How it’s related, we’re still trying to figure that out,” Crawford said.

In June, a Weatherford patrol officer fatally shot a man who pulled a knife on paramedics and firefighters inside a Western wear store.

This story was originally published November 17, 2015 at 12:33 PM with the headline "Weatherford police officer shoots, kills suspect after car chase."