A tragic day for Houston law enforcement after a deputy was killed while two other deputies were critically wounded in a shooting outside a Houston bar Saturday morning. Authorities believe that the officers were ambushed.
The constable deputies at Harris County are said to have had been working on a “police-related extra job” at the 45 Norte Sports Bar at about 2:15 a.m. when they responded to assess a disturbance outside the bar, according to Houston Police Executive Assistant Chief James Jones.
‘Totally ambushed’
He added that the deputies were trying to arrest someone when one of the suspects began shooting at them, equipped with an AR-15 rifle. Jones believes that the officers were “totally ambushed,” adding that they might have interrupted a robbery by the time they were trying to detain a suspect, USA Today reported.
Deputy Constable Kareem Atkins
30-year-old Deputy Constable Kareen Atkins perished in the said shooting as he was pronounced dead at the hospital. Atkins has been with precinct four since 2019 and was revealed to have just returned from paternity leave. The deputy leaves behind a wife and two kids.
Deputy Darrell Garrett, 28, was shot in the back and in intensive care after surgery. Meanwhile, Deputy Juqaim Barthen, 26, sustained a foot injury, though his condition is yet to be disclosed as of writing.
Also, it’s still uncertain whether the officers were able to return fire as the investigation is still ongoing. Authorities stated that they’d taken a person of interest into custody at the scene, but the shooter is not believed to be.
AR-15 not inside the bar
Juliana Garcia was in working inside the bar when tragedy struck. She believes that the AR-15 must have come from the shooter’s vehicle and not from inside of the bar.
Jones is asking for all the help they could get right now, including the entire community’s support as the constables and their family members are suffering. On the other hand, Harris County Constable Precinct 4’s Mark Herman hopes to have a suspect in custody soon and hopes for quick justice for that person. He went on to say that good always trumps evil and what just happened was evil.
