The driver who hit the man is facing charges and police say this case also serves as a warning for others, specifically when it comes to where and where not to pull over during a traffic stop.
It happened Thursday morning on the South Freeway near Yellowstone. The victim had pulled over in the entrance ramp.
Police officers were pulling over Troy Randle, 45, because they say he ran two red lights. But before they could write him a ticket, Randle was hit and killed by an alleged drunk driver on the side of the freeway.
Elaine Randle cried, "What happened to my child, what happened? And why was he on the side of the road like that?"
Elaine and her family are grieving the sudden loss of her son Troy.
"It was murder, that's murder," said Troy's father Frankie Randle.
Police say just before 1am, two officers stopped Randle for allegedly running two red lights. But it's where they stopped him, at an onramp at Highway 288 and Yellowstone, that baffles Randle's family.
Frankie asked, "Why did they stop him there right there on the side of that road?"
Just as officers tried to tell him to move to a safer place, Randle was struck and killed by a suspected drunk driver. Police say that driver's blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit.
Sgt. Robert Gonzales with HPD Traffic Enforcement said, "I know sometimes citizens are scared to stop on the freeway. That's the job we have to do."
Police suggest never stopping if you feel unsafe. Instead, signal to officers, with your hand or blinker, that you're complying. Randle's sister Stacy Teat thinks her brother, was just trying to obey the law.
"No sooner would he see police lights, he will stop," she said. "I feel that's why he stopped when he did, because he didn't want to go to jail or whatever."
The suspect, Monson Durham, 43, is at Ben Taub Hospital. He suffered head injuries. He faces charges of intoxication manslaughter.
