It is a risky thing, being a violent criminal and choosing your target in 2025. Tens of millions of Americans are now legally armed, and justifiable self-defense instances are on the rise—much to the chagrin of anti-gunners.
Then, there’s the luck factor. A Texas man on Friday somehow chose an off-duty sheriff’s deputy to attempt to carjack, and the man had his small child in a car seat.
He paid for this mistake with his life.
Alleged carjacker severely underestimated his intended victim
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez reported that an off-duty officer “discharged his firearm” and that the target was transported to a hospital in critical condition.
It was roughly 2:45 Friday afternoon when the deputy called 911 and told the dispatcher that he was holding a suspect at gunpoint. The operator heard the law enforcement officer issuing verbal commands and then multiple shots rang out.
Investigators believed the alleged carjacker ignored the commands and proceeded to open the vehicle’s passenger door. That’s when gunfire erupted.
Off-duty deputy apparently was left with no choice but to respond with lethal force
First responders attempted to save the suspect, but he was pronounced dead at the hospital. The deputy and his child were uninjured.
HCSO officials later identified the deceased man as 27-year-old Darrius Williams. His mother told reporters that he had just been released from jail Thursday night and suffered from mental health issues.
Investigators reportedly have Ring camera video evidence the District Attorney’s Office will inspect before presenting findings to a grand jury.
And while the presence of mental illness makes the suspect’s death more regrettable, the facts of the case are apparently clear. Unless new evidence somehow changes the sequence of events, the deputy appeared to be well within his rights to defend himself and his child.
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