Ennis Police Kill Man Trying To Flee From Traffic Stop
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ENNIS (CBSDFW.COM) - A man was shot and killed by police officers in Ennis on Monday night as a traffic stop came to a violent end. The incident started at about 9:15 p.m. near a church located along Kaufman Street. The suspect drove his Honda Civic into the church's parking lot followed by four officers in two squad cars.
The Ennis Police Department said that the suspect, identified as 36-year-old Moses Ruben of Dallas, was stopped for going 59 mph in a 35 mph zone. He also had an invalid driver's license and active warrants in two Texas cities.
A witness said that she was outside, getting ready to leave for work, when she saw police officers surround the car. The woman then overheard officers telling the driver to get out. But, according to the witness, the male driver said "no" several times. The gunfire started when the driver put his car into reverse and tried to flee.
"Four rounds. It was 'pow pow pow pow' back-to-back," recalled the female witness, who wanted to remain anonymous. "And then, the car tried to back up again and he hit an SUV -- one of a police SUVs -- and tried to pull forward, trying to make a way to get out."
The suspect actually rammed into two squad cars, police stated, and slammed into a metal fence while attempting to make his escape. The crash bent a portion of the fence and left broken glass on the ground.
According to the Ennis Police Department, officers were nearly hit by Ruben's vehicle as he attempted to get away. The deadly shots were not fired until the car started moving in the direction of the officers, putting them in harm's way. Three shots from two different officers struck Ruben. All invovled officers are now on routine administrative leave while Texas Rangers conduct an investigation.
A sea of officers from multiple agencies were at the church for several hours, but the scene has since been cleared.
Despite his attempts to flee, the witness did not think that the driver needed to be killed. "The officer that shot could have shot the tire. His window was down, they could have tased him," the witness added. "They could have used another form instead of deadly force that resulted in this."