Neighbor shot by former Sugar Land police officer could face assault charge

SUGAR LAND, Texas (KTRK) -- Sugar Land police say a former officer acted in self defense when he shot a neighbor in August, and now the department is recommending his neighbor be charged with misdemeanor assault.

The night of Aug. 1, officers arrived to Silas Creek Drive and found blood on the hands of the former officer who shot 29-year old Ozzy Kazi.

Through hours of body camera video obtained by the family's defense team, ABC13 got a better understanding of how officers led the investigation upon arriving.

The former officer, who will not be named as he is not facing any charges, told investigators that he was attacked by Kazi.

The Sugar Land Police Department released the following statement:

"The investigation determined that Kazi was seen repeatedly ringing a neighbor's doorbell before he entered another neighbor's property who was sitting in his garage. The neighbor retrieved a firearm and told Kazi to leave his property but Kazi refused, entered the neighbor's garage and violently attacked the man. A struggle ensued, Kazi attempted to take the neighbor's gun and the neighbor shot Kazi in self-defense. The neighbor who was attacked sustained physical injuries from the altercation."

In the body camera video, it is evident that the responding officers were familiar with the shooter. They can be heard arriving and calling the shooter by his first name and exchanging words about how family members are doing.

"Is that ___," one officer can be heard saying to another. The other office responds in shock with two expletives. "__k , __k!"

On Wednesday, Kazi sat alongside his family during a press conference as they expressed frustration and anger over the case, which they called biased.

"They made a decision based upon the word of someone who worked for them, when really what they should have done is recused themselves from the situation," said Wayne Dolcefino, a family representative.

In body camera video, the former officer can be heard describing to officers what happened.

"So I'm holding the gun, and by the time he gets close, I am pointing the gun at him and he reaches up and grabs the gun," he told officers.

"I didn't want to die," Kazi said. "I grabbed the gun. I moved my right ankle behind his ankle, and I pushed him to the ground to try and get the gun away."

According to Kazi, the man raised the gun unprovoked, simply because he was walking across his driveway, and even threatened to arrest him.

The two have been neighbors for more than a decade, and on most days the family says their interactions are amicable.

"He knew my son had some mental problems," said Kazi's father.

When speaking to ABC13 outside of their home, Kazi's father said his son has bipolar disorder and his neighbor was aware.

Neighbors in the area say Kazi was not typically problematic or aggressive.

In a statement from the Fort Bend County District Attorney's office who is currently reviewing the case, they say no one has been charged yet.

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