Woman's murder is 473rd homicide in Houston this year

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A 40-year-old woman died after she and a 33-year-old man were shot outside of a home overnight in northeast Houston.

It happened in the 3500 block of Gillespie near Bringhurst Street.

Police say the woman and the man, identified as Terrance Brooks, were outside with a group of people playing dominos when they were approached by two other men who started shooting, hitting them.

The victims were taken to the hospital, but the woman did not survive. Her identity is pending verification by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences.

Brooks is in stable condition.

There is no motive at this time and it's unknown if there's a connection between the victims and the shooters, investigators say.

Witnesses claim they saw two men run away.

Authorities had a limited description of the shooters, saying they were Black men in their 20s. One man is described as thin and about 5 feet, 9 inches tall. The second man is described as heavy set and about 5 feet, 7 inches tall.

Anyone with information in this case is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

This murder brings the number of homicides in Houston to 473, the highest in the last three years.

That's also up significantly from 2020, when the number was just under 400.

In 2019, 274 homicides were reported.

"We just want everybody to come together. People think that the police department controls the murder rate. It's everybody that controls the murder rate. People making better decisions, people controlling their tempers, and just watching where you're hanging out and who you're hanging out with," said Houston police chief Troy Finner.

Finner says he plans to make announcements around the first of the year on strategies to decrease the murder rate.