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Off-duty Houston officer shot in suspected road rage incident, police say
The officer was driving to work when he was shot in his shoulder following an alleged road rage incident.
HOUSTON - A Houston police officer was shot in the shoulder Saturday night following a road rage incident while driving to his assignment, but he is expected to recover after driving himself to a nearby police station for treatment.
Houston officer-involved shooting
The man arrested, 23-year-old Hermosa Reyes, appeared before a judge on Sunday night. His bond was set at $60,000 and the judge said the affidavit did not have evidence that Reyes knew the victim was an officer.
"I'll add for the record that the affidavit did not contain information that would lead this court to believe that the defendant was aware the complaint was a law enforcement officer. There is no indication that the complainant was in full uniform or in a police vehicle. It was alleged that he was en route to work," the judge said.
The names of the two females arrested have not yet been released.
What we know:
The officer, identified as Jake Parker, was shot around 10:30 p.m. at the intersection of Gessner and Hempstead, Mayor John Whitmire confirmed at a late-night news conference.
"A dispute, road rage, most likely with three suspects," said Mayor Whitmire. "One got out of the car. Shot Officer Parker in the shoulder."
Gessner Rd. & Hempstead Rd. officer-involved shooting (Source: Onscene)
Officer Parker, a three-year veteran with a wife and two children, was in uniform but not wearing his vest at the time of the shooting. He managed to drive himself to the Northwest Substation, where he was treated by first responders and rushed to a local hospital. Officials said he was in good spirits and his family was en route.
Houston Police Chief J. Noe Diaz praised the quick work of law enforcement, crediting a Hedwig Village police officer who used a license plate reader to identify the suspect vehicle and then followed it into southwest Houston while notifying HPD teams.
"One male and two female suspects were apprehended rather quickly and the weapon was recovered," said Chief Diaz.
The police chief confirmed that three persons of interest are in custody and the investigation is ongoing. Officials are asking anyone with video footage of the incident to share it with the police department.
Leaders react to road rage violence
What they're saying:
Mayor Whitmire took the opportunity to highlight the dangers faced by police officers daily and cautioned elected officials about making general statements criticizing law enforcement, suggesting such rhetoric may influence "bad actors."
The Houston Police Officers’ Union also spoke, condemning the violence.
"Anybody that’s out there that’s driving around, if you believe any kind of traffic altercation is worth taking a life over, you’re an idiot," a union representative stated. "We have way too many incidents like this. This officer’s just driving to work in uniform, and somebody gets so mad... that they’re going to try to take a life over that. That’s completely insane."
Despite the traumatic experience, the officer is reportedly ready to return to duty after his recovery.
"All he’s done is keep Officer Parker and his family in your prayers," Mayor Whitmire said. "He’s going to recover from the gunshot wound. He will have obviously psychological scars. So we need to keep his family in our prayers."
Road rage concerns in Houston
Local perspective:
Doug Shupe is the AAA Texas spokesperson and chatted with Fox 26 crews about the prevalence of road rage in Houston.
" AAA just did a study which found 98% of American drivers have seen or engaged in some form of aggressive driving and some of them engaged in some of the more serious road rage-type incidents. It’s really important to practice kindness, leave plenty of space between our vehicle and other vehicles so that we are not riding on someone’s bumper. Don’t honk out of anger because that can just set somebody off, and never use hand gestures because that could make somebody furious — even something as simple as the nod of the head," Shupe said.
Shupe also said it's important to practice patience and gave tips on how you can stay safe if you find yourself involved with an enraged driver.
"Be as courteous as you can, use your turn signal, allow people to merge. We’re all trying to get to the destination that we need to get to, and so practicing a little courtesy can really go a long way," Shupe said," f you find that there is an angry driver that is pursuing you and won't let up. What you need to do is go to a public place — a police station, a fire station, a hospital — and call for help. What you don’t want to do is drive home while that angry driver is following you," Shupe said.
What we don't know:
The identities of the three people taken into custody have not been released.
The Source: Information in this article is from the Houston Police Department, the Houston mayor, and Onscene.