3 Fort Worth officers on administrative leave following shooting
FORT WORTH - Fort Worth police continue to investigate a shooting, which involved three of their officers Tuesday night.
Police told CBS News Texas, three officers responded to a burglary alarm at Sunbelt Rentals on the 700 block of North Beach Street just after 9 p.m. Investigators said they saw a man outside of the business. When the officers approached the suspect, he ran away and fired shots at the officers who chased after him. Police said three officers fired back. Investigators said the chase lasted about one block – and came to an end near the frontage road of Highway 121; that's where the suspect fell on an embankment and turned the gun on himself.
"There were shell casings all over the parking lot," Craig Stephen, a nearby employee, told CBS News Texas. Stephen says the shooting happened in his work parking lot. He says he was working late Tuesday night– but if he left work minutes later, he could have possibly been caught in the crossfire.
"I could have been walking across the parking lot, and the guy could have been running this way with shots being fired by whoever was firing them. I could have been hit easily," Stephen added.
Doctor Johnny Nhan is a criminal justice professor with Texas Christian University and is also a volunteer reserve officer with FWPD. He says there are many factors with officer involved shootings. "It's a very complicated situation, because some of the factors that they have to take into account is "who's in the background." You can't just shoot at somebody. They [police] must consider who's in the background. What's that person doing? Are they actively shooting at the police? Are you going to be aggressive at that point?" Nhan added.
He says the officers took the appropriate actions. He also says the internal investigation can take a while. "In this case, since they were being shot at --- that it would be justified. But it's still a lengthy process and most police can't talk about the process during the time."
Fort Worth police said one of the officers has three years' experience with the department and the other two officers have one year experience. Investigators tell us none of the officers or any bystanders were hurt.
"I can't be prouder of these officers for still coming to work every day knowing this is something they might have to face," Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes, "Day after day, night after night, my officers are coming out here never knowing what they are going to encounter. They were responding to a burglary call and they ended up being shot at multiple times."
At this time, Fort Worth police have not released the suspect's name or the names of the officers, but they plan to release the officers' body camera video in about three to five days.