Just after midnight Sunday in Comfort, a call about a fight at a roadside motel escalated into a gunfight between a Kendall County sheriff's deputy and an armed man in the parking lot, authorities said.
The shootout unfolded around 12:45 a.m. outside the Executive Inn off U.S. Highway 87. Sheriff’s officials said the man fired at the deputy in the parking lot, and the deputy shot back, critically wounding him. The man was airlifted to a San Antonio hospital in critical condition, while the deputy was not injured.
According to a report from the San Antonio Express-News, the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post that deputies were called to the motel after reports of a fight among several men in which shots had already been fired. One of those men allegedly shot at the arriving deputy, who returned fire and hit him.
Scene and response
As reported by KSAT, deputies were dispatched around 12:45 a.m. to the Executive Inn at 32 U.S. Highway 87 after 911 callers reported several men fighting and gunfire in the motel parking lot.
Deputies from Kendall and Kerr counties, along with Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and other first responders, converged on the scene. Authorities told reporters there was no ongoing threat to the public after the shooting, a key detail for nearby residents who woke up to sirens and helicopter noise instead of their usual quiet Hill Country night.
Investigation and charges
The Kendall County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the shooting and has not released the wounded man’s identity, according to officials. As reported by the San Antonio Express-News, the man is facing a charge of aggravated assault on a police officer with a deadly weapon, a first‑degree felony.
Officials have not said whether any additional arrests were made in connection with the reported fight, and they have not detailed the man’s injuries beyond describing his condition as critical.
What the charge can mean
Under Texas law, aggravated assault against a public servant can be elevated to a first‑degree felony in certain circumstances. A conviction can carry a punishment ranging from five to 99 years or life in prison, plus fines. The statute, Texas Penal Code § 22.02, is outlined on Justia.
Prosecutors will decide whether to present the case to a grand jury or file charges directly after investigators finish their work.
The sheriff’s office asked anyone with information about the incident to contact the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office. This story will be updated as officials release more details.
