Two Denton police officers have been placed on administrative leave Wednesday morning after shooting a man who fired a handgun at them.
In a news conference early Wednesday morning, Denton Police Chief Frank Dixon said that an officer responded at 2:18 a.m. to a reported disturbance at Pace’s Crossing apartments, near the Loop 288/I-35E interchange. The caller reported hearing what sounded like gunshots and a woman being hit an hour earlier and then again right before calling. As the responding officer approached the apartment, he heard a gunshot and called for backup, and two more officers came.
Soon after they arrived, the apartment door opened and out came a hand, pointing a pistol at the officers for a few seconds, before going back inside. Then, an armed 39-year-old white man holding a 29-year-old white woman came out, then retreated back into the apartment. The three officers were trying to make contact with the man, and he came back out again with the woman and gun, Dixon said. The officers told the man to drop the gun, but he didn’t and eventually fired his gun at them. The officers returned fire, striking the suspect twice in the torso. He was taken to a local hospital and is in stable condition, and his injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. No officers were injured.
Police found bullet strikes that went from the suspect’s apartment into another apartment, Dixon said.
The two officers who struck the suspect have been with Denton PD for two years and over three years, and they were immediately placed on administrative leave. Body cam footage was recorded by all three officers on scene. The Texas Rangers will be investigating the shooting. The names of the suspect and officers were not released.
