HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — A man was shot and killed in an exchange of gunfire with deputies in north Harris County, according to Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. A woman who was nearby was also injured.
Gonzalez said it started when deputies made a traffic stop on a driver along FM 1960 near the North Freeway because of expired tags and a busted taillight.
When they asked the driver to get out of the vehicle, he reportedly refused and identified himself as a "sovereign citizen."
Gonzalez said deputies spoke to him for about an hour, but he still didn't comply. They determined the driver had a possible open felony warrant out of Brazoria County, so spike strips were placed to prevent him from leaving the scene.
The suspect drove off and led deputies on a short chase. Two minutes after the suspect took off, deputies stopped him using a pit maneuver.
Gonzalez the suspect's SUV spun out. He got out and began shooting at deputies. Deputies shot back, hitting the suspect, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
In all Gonzalez said one sergeant and three deputies shot at the suspect.
A female bystander was hit by gunfire and was transported to the hospital, according to Gonzalez. He said she underwent surgery and is expected to survive.
Judy Coward and her husband, owners of E&J transportation services, were caught in the crossfire.
"We were over here because we came to get gas to prepare for Monday morning," she said.
Their private bus was riddled with bullets.
"It went through the left side of our bus," she said. "It's just the experience that you see on TV shows, but you never expect to see it live from the start to the end.”
Gonzalez said all the information is preliminary. At this point, we don't have the name of the suspect.
What is a sovereign citizen?
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez mentioned the suspect in this case claimed to be a sovereign citizen. KHOU 11's Marcelino Benito spoke with the Anti-Defamation League about the extremist movement once that's again gaining popularity. You can see the full explanation below.