HOUSTON — A Pasadena man has been sentenced to 18 years in prison after shooting a Houston Police Department officer during a traffic stop nearly a year ago.
Jimmy Caston Bryan, 24, pleaded guilty on Oct. 13, 2022, to possessing with intent to distribute meth and to carrying and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.
On Tuesday, he was sentenced to 220 months in prison (18 years) for trafficking meth and the firearms charge. The prison term will be immediately followed by five years of supervised release, according to the Department of Justice.
What happened
On May 4, 2022, two HPD officers pulled Bryan over for a traffic stop in the 14300 block of the Gulf Freeway at Astoria Boulevard. The traffic stop was part of a narcotics investigation.
The officers approached Bryan's truck and asked him for identification, but Bryan did not comply.
The officers asked Bryan to get out of the truck and as one of the officers opened Bryan's door, Bryan grabbed his gun and started shooting.
The officers shot back at Bryan, hitting him, but not before HPD Officer J. Sallee was shot twice -- once in the chest and once in the right hip.
Both Sallee and Bryan were taken to the hospital for their gunshot wounds.
Bryan's vehicle was searched and authorities found over 48 grams of meth, heroin, cocaine, ecstasy, a digital scale and two additional handguns, the Justice Department said.
Bodycam videos were released of the shooting as part of HPD's policy to release bodycam videos from officer-involved shootings within 30 days of incidents involving a death or injury.