City officials weigh in on officer-involved shooting of wheelchair-bound double amputee

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- City officials are now weighing in on the fatal shooting of a mentally and physically disabled man at the hands of police.

At the group home where the deadly shooting occurred is a note saying people inside would no longer talk about what happened over the weekend. But community activists are just beginning their crusade.

"I'm sick and tired of the same old thing from our police departments here in Houston. We want some action, we want the truth, we want the secrecy stopped. We want to see everything being done in this case, future cases, and past cases," said Arlene Kelly with Civilians Down.

Civilians Down is a local organization that focuses on police-related shootings. She and others with the Greater Houston Coalition for Justice called for an outside investigation into the shooting that killed wheelchair-bound double amputee Brian Claunch.

"Things do get dangerous, things do get stressful, but you have to stop and think, you have to use good judgement," said Sylvia Gonzalez with LULAC.

But at City Hall on Wednesday, elected officials asked for restraint. Mayor Annise Parker says for now she doesn't know exactly why a Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) officer wasn't on scene.

"I don't know why a CIT officer was not dispatched," said the mayor.

Council members pointed out the FBI is already monitoring the investigation, and they urged patience.

"Until an investigation is complete, we simply don't know what happened, and I would encourage us to, for the benefit of the victim's family, for the benefit of officers in our city, let investigations run their course," said Council Member C.O. Bradford.

The mayor said she has a meeting with Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland at the end of the week to further discuss the shooting.

Since the first of this year, there have been 22 officer-involved shootings in Houston. That's compared to 15 in all of last year. Of those 22 officer-involved shootings this year, ten suspects or citizens were killed, 13 were injured, and three officers were wounded.

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Questions surround officer-involved shooting of amputee

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A mentally ill double amputee was shot and killed by a Houston police officer this weekend after he refused to drop a pen.

Officer M. Marin pulled the trigger, authorities said. He claims he did not have a choice, but some are questioning how Houston Police Department officers are trained.

Neighbors across the street were getting ready to go to bed when they saw several police cars arrive at the Healing Hands group home on Polk near downtown Houston.

Police say they were responding to a disturbance at Healing Hands, where several men with mental illnesses live with a caretaker.

Brian Claunch was the man at the center of the call for help. The caretaker said the wheelchair-bound double amputee was aggressive because he wanted soda and cigarettes.

When Marin and his partner went inside the home, HPD says Claunch cornered one officer with his wheelchair, disobeyed commands and was waving a shiny object.

Police say the officer feared for his life and his partner's, so he shot Claunch -- a response some are questioning.

Police now say the object Claunch was holding was a ballpoint pen.

Questions about why the officer didn't use a Taser will be part of the investigation, HPD spokesperson Kese Smith said.

Smith added that all cadets are required to take crisis intervention training, but it's unclear if Marin entered the academy before or after that was put into place.

The caretaker at the group home did not want to talk Sunday night. It was back to the dark, quiet neighborhood many are used to.

We learned that Marin shot and killed another suspect back in October 2009. Police say the suspect lunged at him with a knife.

Marin has been with the force for five years. As is standard in all officer-involved shootings, he was immediately placed on three-day administrative leave.

This shooting, like all officer-involved shootings, will be investigated by the homicide division, the internal affairs division and the Harris County District Attorney's Office.

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Pregnant woman hit by car following officer-involved shooting

  Crystal KobzaHOUSTON (KTRK) -- An off-duty Harris County Precinct 4 Constable's Office deputy tried to stop suspected shoplifters and set off a series of events early Sunday that ended with an innocent woman getting hit by a car.

It happened around 2am in the parking lot of a 24-hour Walmart on the North Freeway near Tidwell in northwest Houston.

According to the Harris County Sheriff's Office, a man and woman distracted an off-duty deputy working as a security guard by telling him there was a wreck in the parking lot.

That's when the alleged shoplifters made their move out of the store.

"Moments later the manager came running. They had obviously loaded down some baskets with meat and rolled it out the front door," Pct. 4 Assistant Chief Mark Herman said. "The manager saw it, alerted the officer, and that's when the confrontation began."

As the deputy was detaining the woman, the male suspect ran to his car. Authorities say that's when he attempted to use his car as a weapon.

"Once getting into his vehicle, the individual tried to run the officer over," Herman said. "The officer drew his weapon and discharged his weapon numerous times at the suspect."

The deputy wasn't the only person caught in the path of the out-of-control vehicle. An innocent bystander loading groceries into her car was knocked to the ground by her own vehicle after the suspect ran his car straight into hers.

"She was ground transported to LBJ [Hospital]. We found out later she was pregnant," Herman said. "We know she has cuts and bruises and they're doing an evaluation on her being that she is pregnant."

The male suspect fled the scene. Houston police and HCSO investigators are hoping his accomplice will help them locate him. They are also reviewing security video taken from the parking lot.

Both suspects face numerous charges, including theft and aggravated assault.

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Suspect killed in officer-involved shooting in northwest Houston

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Houston police officer is recovering from stab wounds, while the man accused of attacking him is dead.

It all went down on Dewalt and West Montgomery in northwest Houston last night. Police say two undercover officers were sitting in an unmarked vehicle conducting surveillance when a couple of men approached them.

One of the men, identified as 51-year-old Kevin Bernard Hunter, began beating on the officers' vehicle and yelling profanities at them. Hunter then threatened to kill the officers. The officers then jumped into action after Hunter started stabbing and slashing at one of them.

"Both officers discharged their weapon, striking the suspect," said John Cannon with the Houston Police Department "The suspect was using a box cutter type instrument. Paramedics tried to revive him, but he died here at the scene."

The officer, a 20-year veteran of the Houston Police Department, was taken to the hospital. He was treated for his wounds and released.

Both officers are on administrative duty for three days, which is HPD policy.

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HPD investigating officer-involved shooting

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- An off-duty officer shot at a suspect outside a nightclub in southeast Houston overnight.

It happened around 2am outside the El Portal nightclub on Lawndale and Evergreen. Apparently there was some kind of disturbance inside the club and a man had been asked to leave.

Authorities say that's when the man's girlfriend came out and found a uniformed HPD officer who was working security in the parking lot. The woman exchanged words with the officer, at which point her boyfriend came out and police say he tried to take a swing at the officer.

Police say the couple then went to their vehicle and it appeared the man got a gun and loaded it. The couple then started to drive away and authorities say the man pointed the gun at the HPD officer.

According to authorities, the HPD officer was in fear for his life and he started shooting at the suspect.

No one was hit by the flying bullets.

The suspect and his girlfriend drove out of the parking lot and a short time later came back to the scene. Police were eventually able to pull the vehicle over and took two suspects into custody.

No charges have been filed as of yet.

Authorities say they did find a loaded weapon inside the suspect's vehicle.

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No one injured in SW Houston officer-involved wreck

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Houston police officer was inside his squad car on patrol when it was hit by another vehicle in southwest Houston Christmas morning.

It happened around 4:30am Sunday on Beechnut near Maplecrest.

Investigators say the driver of the other car failed to yield the right of way when turning and hit the officer's squad car.

No one was hurt.

There is no word on whether the driver will be ticketed.

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