HOUSTON — Houston police officers shot and killed a robbery suspect in southwest Houston Sunday morning.
This happened outside the suspect's home on Alrover Street, which is near the intersection of Buffalo Speedway and West Fuqua Street.
Chief Troy Finner said around 11:21 a.m., officers were sent to a robbery in progress at a convenience store on West Fuqua Street.
The suspect, 45, robbed the store at gunpoint and then got into a confrontation with someone outside, according to Finner.
Finner said as officers were arriving to the scene, the suspect pistol whipped the person outside and held them at gunpoint.
Officers ordered the suspect to drop his weapon, but he got on a bike and headed northbound on Alrover Street, where he lives.
When the suspect got to his home, he sat on a bench outside, still holding his gun. Finner said officers gave him more commands to drop the gun, but instead, the suspect got up and started going towards the officers.
Finner said three officers discharged their guns at the suspect, striking him. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
No officers were injured. The victim outside the convenience store was treated at the scene for minor head injuries by the Houston Fire Department.
This shooting is being investigated by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, HPD’s Special Investigative Unit and Internal Affairs.
This is HPD's third officer-involved shooting this week.
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David Thomas, a forensic studies professor with decades of law enforcement experience, tells KHOU 11 News the commands are part of training.
"What generally happens is someone's there saying ‘hey we need you to put the gun down so no one gets hurt,’" he said.
Thomas believes at some point, the officers find themselves in danger.
"As much as police want to be reasonable and try to be reasonable, that’s where that challenges them, this is going to challenge them, there’s a certain number of stressors there that haven’t been there in the past," he said.
Chief Finner said officers have faced increasing danger in the past few years, but are trying to be part of an effort to keep the city safe.
"We're very patient in trying to get him to drop the weapon and make another decision, but when people make up their minds, committed to whatever act they do, its not much you can do," he said in a news conference following the shooting.