HOUSTON — There was a bombshell in the trial of the man charged with killing Harris County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Sandeep Dhaliwal right before his trial got underway Monday.
Robert Solis is charged with capital murder in the 2019 shooting death of Deputy Dhaliwal. Monday morning, he fired his attorney and said he will represent himself in the trial.
"The court examined him and found that he has sufficient knowledge," Defense Attorney Allen Isbell said outside the courtroom. "It's his right under the constitution."
In her opening statement, Prosecutor Katy Warren said Dhaliwal's body camera showed Solis before and after the deputy was shot in the back of the head.
"When Dhaliwal falls to the ground and that camera pans up toward the heavens you will see that the man standing over Dhaliwal holding that smoking gun is none other than Robert Solis," Warren told the jurors.
Solis did not make an opening statement.
Some of Dhaliwal's family members, including his father, chose not to attend the trial because they are still overwhelmed with grief.
“I can’t even imagine what is in the hearts and minds of Sandeep’s family and it’s painful for me as well," former sheriff and current county commissioner Adrian Garcia said.
If convicted, Solis could face the death penalty.
The crime
Dhaliwal was gunned down during a traffic stop in the 14800 block of Willancy Court near West Road in northwest Harris County on Sept. 27, 2019.
As the deputy was walking back to his patrol unit, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said a man, later identified as Solis, got out and opened fire.
"The suspect shot Deputy Dhaliwal at least a couple of times from behind in a very ruthless, cold-blooded way," the sheriff said at the scene.
Solis was arrested inside a nearby business and the gun believed to be used in the shooting was found in the parking lot.
Was Dhaliwal's death preventable?
Solis is an ex-con with a violent criminal history and he had at least one open warrant for a parole violation.
Ex-girlfriend Melissa Purtee told us back then that she tried to warn authorities.
“All of this could have been prevented had somebody done their job the right way,” she told us in an interview on Oct. 3, 2019.
KHOU 11 obtained one of her calls to the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s office from July.
“My kids' father, he has skipped out on parole, he’s not checking in for over two years now and it was a violent crime he was originally arrested for,” Purtee told the dispatcher.
Purtee also claims she called parole officers, but the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said it has no record of her calls.
“No one is being held accountable,” said State Senator John Whitmire said in 2019.
He said there’s not one single agency responsible for finding people like Solis, who skip out on parole. Whitmire vowed to fight for change in the Texas legislature.
Remembering Sandeep Dhaliwal
From law enforcement to the Sikh community and total strangers, the death of Dhaliwal touched the community deeply.
Gonzalez described him as a well-liked and well-respected leader in the department and a "ray of sunshine and sunlight for so many."
“He was a hero, a respected member of the community, and a trailblazer,” Gonzalez said. “For me, personally, I’m heartbroken because he’s a personal friend of mine."
In 2009, Dhaliwal gave up lucrative work as an entrepreneur with a trucking company. After hearing then-sheriff Adrian Garcia speak at a Sikh temple.
“He wanted to pursue his calling of public service and consulted with his father about getting permission to join the department,” said Garcia, now a Harris County Commissioner. “He did, and he did so very quietly. I met him many times but did not understand the circumstances by which he came to us.”
Legacy of change
United Sikhs launched The Deputy Dhaliwal HERO Fund (Honoring Emergency Response Officers) with a donation of $600,000 to his wife and three children.
Garcia said Dhaliwal dreamt of creating the fund when he met a Texas police officer who could not pay for roof repairs after Hurricane Harvey. His family is the first beneficiary of the fund.
"The Deputy Dhaliwal HERO Fund was Sandeep's dream to help first responders who are affected in the line of duty or in need of emergency funds," Garcia said. "This was his dream to uplift humanity and his fellow first responders as well as their families in their time of need."
First responders are able to request emergency funds directly on the United Sikhs’ website.
In 2015, HCSO became the largest law enforcement agency in the United States to allow a Sikh deputy to serve with Sikhism's articles of faith, including a turban and beard. His death inspired HPD to follow suit.
In 2020, a portion of Beltway 8 near Highway 249 was renamed the HCSO Deputy Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal Memorial Tollway.
A post office in west Houston was renamed in his honor last October.