Two people were reportedly wounded after being shot by police officers in separate incidents in Independent Heights and Meyerland over the weekend.
In the first incident, a police officer ended up shooting a person in the leg after they tried to drive away from a traffic stop in Independent Heights.
Assistant Police Chief Chandra Hatcher of the Houston Police Department (HPD) says that the officer had been conducting a traffic stop just after 7 p.m. when they sighted and pulled up a vehicle with illegally tinted windows and “other equipment violations” in the 7400 block of North Main Street.
Reports say that though the driver stopped and quickly got off the car, he also immediately climbed back in and closed the door. Apparently, when the officer approached the vehicle and tried to open the door, the driver tried to force it back shut, and a struggle ensued.
Hatcher shared that the driver tried to run by driving off while the officer was holding on, and both ended up tumbling out of the moving car. The officer who was being dragged fired multiple shots, hitting the driver at least once in the leg, Houston Chronicle reported.
The officer reportedly suffered some road rash from being dragged and was also hit in the head during the struggle. They were later brought to a nearby hospital for treatment. Both have been stabilized and treated for non-life-threatening injuries, says the report from Houston Chronicle.
In a separate incident in Meyerland, also over the weekend, a deputy from Precinct 5 reportedly shot a man who allegedly stabbed two people and charged police officers while holding a knife, according to police.
Officers from the Houston police, along with the deputies from Precinct 5 constable’s office were dispatched after reports that a man brandishing a knife is looking for trouble and assaulting people at around 10 a.m. in the 10300 block of Mullin Drive.
Assistant Chief Eric Garcia of the Houston Police Department said that the dispatched officers were greeted with the sight of two people who were bleeding from stab wounds.
The man with a knife allegedly charged at a deputy who shouted at him to drop his weapon before firing a shot. The man was shot multiple times and was later taken to Memorial Hermann Hospital, where his condition was stabilized.
The two stabbing victims, who are believed to be the suspect’s relatives, were also treated at the same hospital.
Both incidents remain under investigation.