
A 17-year-old boy was shot and wounded by a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper during a traffic stop in the Atascocita area, as captured on new surveillance video footage. The shooting took place around 11 a.m. on Will Clayton Parkway near Village Tower Drive, as reported by KHOU. Authorities stated initial observations indicated potential criminal drug activity, a factor contributing to the decision to stop the vehicle and further search its occupants.
The incident commenced when the trooper conducted the traffic stop and subsequently ordered the female driver and her 17-year-old son to exit the car. The Texas DPS has not disclosed specific details on the suspected "criminal drug activity." During a pat-down of the teenager, the trooper believed he felt a pistol, prompting the young man to flee. The DPS has stated that it is unclear whether the teen produced a weapon during the pursuit, but he was shot by the trooper when he allegedly turned and reached towards his waistband. A pistol was later recovered at the scene, as stated by KHOU.
Following the incident, the trooper provided first aid until emergency services transported the teen to an area hospital, where he remained conscious and communicative. The Texas Rangers have taken on the investigation, reviewing evidence, including body-worn camera footage from the trooper who was placed on administrative leave pending the investigation's outcome. The teen will likely face charges, while the status of potential charges for the female driver, also the young man's mother, remains undetermined.
In a separate account, the teenager's aunt, Andrea Jasmine, conveyed skepticism regarding the DPS narrative, expressing disbelief about the presence of a gun. "I don't know nothing about no gun. And if he did have a gun, from what I was told, he was running away from the police, and the area," she told ABC13. The family believes the stop was initially made due to excessively tinted car windows. Jasmine recounted the harrowing moment she heard the gunfire while on the phone with her nephew: "I heard a whole bunch of hollering and screaming and pow pow pow pow pow." She is now demanding to see the body-cam footage as her nephew faces surgery for multiple gunshot wounds; meanwhile, the mother has been released.
The Texas Rangers continue to investigate, including whether the teen indeed pulled out or pointed the gun at the trooper. Only one trooper was involved in the incident, which Cummings mentioned is standard for the agency. DPS spokesperson Lt. Craig Cummings stated, "We can say he reached toward his waist, and a weapon was found where the suspect fell to the ground," as per a report by ABC13. The case remains under close scrutiny as involved parties and the community await further details and clarity on the events that transpired on Will Clayton Parkway.