Off-duty Harris Co. deputy and 2nd man injured in exchange of gunfire in west Houston, HPD says

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- An off-duty Harris County Sheriff's Office deputy and another man are recovering after they were both injured in an exchange of gunfire early Monday morning in west Houston.

Houston police responded to a shooting in progress call in the 5600 block of Schumacher Lane near Chimney Rock Road at 5:53 a.m. Monday, police said.

At the scene, officers found two men with gunshot wounds. One of them was identified as an off-duty HCSO deputy, according to police.

Officers were able to quickly apply a chest seal to one of the men. A Houston fire station was just two blocks away, so paramedics were able to arrive quickly and apply life-saving measures, investigators said.

"Those gunshot wounds that they both sustained could potentially be fatal had the first responders not gotten here with such a quick response," Asst. Chief Ban Tien said.

Although Sherriff Ed Gonzalez initially said the deputy was in critical condition, he provided a later update that the deputy was stable and expected to survive. The other man is also expected to survive.

Tien said a preliminary investigation found that the off-duty deputy, who is in his 30s, was inside his car and pulled up next to a woman in her 20s who was in her own vehicle.

While the pair was talking, another man in his 20s pulled up in his car and got out, investigators said.

That's when an argument reportedly broke out. Eventually, the argument escalated to a shooting.

Both men fired their weapons, and they were both shot, Tien said. It was unclear who fired their weapon first. Investigators said two guns were recovered at the scene.

Investigators believe the two men and the woman all know each other.

The woman was not injured, according to police.

"I can only imagine, she is shaken up right now," Tien said. "So, the information we were able to get is kind of limited."

Investigators said there are many security cameras in the area.

Just down the street, a nightclub was closing around the same time as the shooting. Now, there are unanswered questions over whether everyone involved in the shooting were coming from the club.

HPD is leading the investigation into the altercation, though HCSO will conduct a concurrent investigation since one of their deputies was involved.

Tien said the deputy was not in uniform and was not working any extra jobs at the time of the shooting.

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