HPD officer hits suspect trying to flee

It happened around 12:30am as two officers were responding to a disturbance call in a residential area on Cherry Forest near T.C. Jester.

Deborah Davis says she called 911, asking police to help her with her intoxicated boyfriend, 50-year-old Edwin Frelix. Now Frelix is dead after he was hit by the police car.

Police are stressing that this was just a terrible accident. They say officers were dealing with a man who was both uncooperative and unpredictable. But that man's loved ones say this did not have to happen.

"The police told me that his body slid under the car after the car jumped the curb," said Davis. "That is impossible for his body to slide under the car. He is too thick."

When officers arrived, they say Frelix ran from them. One officer chased him on foot and the other in a car. Police say when Frelix made an unexpected move, the officer in the patrol car hit him, pinning him under the car.

Officers performed CPR on Frelix, but he did not survive.

"The driver of the vehicle took a tactical, tried to get tactical advantage point on the person who was actually on foot while his partner was literally behind him, chasing him and the individual ran in front of the vehicle," said Sgt. Rick Moreno with the Houston Police Department. "That is all we know at this time."

Police say the officer was attempting to stop Frelix, but Davis says she had called the dispatcher back to try to cancel the call for help. She says Frelix had left her property and was not causing a problem. She says the officers did not handle the call properly.

"They weren't looking for a criminal. They weren't looking for someone who was violent," she said. "So no violent force was necessary."

Both officers have now been placed on three day administrative duty while the investigation is being conducted.