"" HOUSTON—Authorities said Saturday a 30-
year-old man has been charged with capital
murder in connection with the fatal
shooting of a sheriff’s deputy who was
gunned down from behind while filling up
his patrol car at a suburban Houston gas
station.
Harris County Sheriff Ron Hickman
identified the man as Shannon J. Miles, who
is in police custody.
Mr. Hickman said Mr. Miles had a previous
record, including charges of resisting arrest
and trespassing. Authorities said they are
not sure of the motive.
Deputy Darren Goforth, 47, was pumping
gas about 8:30 p.m. Friday when a man
approached him from behind and fired
multiple shots, continuing to fire after the
deputy had fallen to the ground.
Earlier Saturday, Harris County Sheriff’s
Office spokesman Deputy Thomas Gilliland
said officials were questioning a person of
interest and had a search warrant for a
two-story brick home.
Harris County Sheriff Ron Hickman linked
the ambush to tensions across the nation
over the killings of black men by police that
spawned the “Black Lives Matter” protest
movement.
“Our system of justice absolutely requires a
law enforcement presence to protect our
community,” Mr. Hickman said at a news
conference earlier on Saturday. “So at any
point when the rhetoric ramps up to the
point where calculated cold-blooded
assassination of police officers happens, this
rhetoric has gotten out of control.
“We’ve heard Black Lives Matter, All Lives
Matter. Well, cops’ lives matter, too. So
why don’t we drop the qualifier and say
lives matter.”
Mr. Goforth was a 10-year veteran of the
force, had a wife and two children, Mr.
Hickman said. As for a motive, Mr.
Hickman said that until anything is known
with “certainty ... it’s all speculation” but
later suggested that Mr. Goforth was
targeted because he was in law
enforcement.
Harris County District Attorney Devon
Anderson called on what she described as
“the silent majority in this country to
support law enforcement.”
“There are a few bad apples in every
profession. That does not mean there should
be open warfare declared on law
enforcement,” she said.
In a statement Saturday, Gov. Greg Abbott
said “heinous and deliberate crimes against
law enforcement will not be tolerated” and
that the state “reveres the men and women
in law enforcement who put their lives on
the line every day to protect and serve their
communities.”
The deputy had gone to the Chevron gas
station in Cypress, a middle-class to upper
middle-class suburban area of Harris
County that is unincorporated and located
northwest of Houston, after responding to a
routine car accident earlier Friday.
An impromptu memorial sprouted at the
pump he had used Friday night, with a pile
of balloons, flowers, candles and notes,
including one that said, “Gone but never
forgotten R.I.P. Deputy Goforth.” The gas
station was open Saturday, but that pump
was closed.
Brian McCullar knew Mr. Goforth because
the deputy had patrolled his neighborhood,
which is about two miles from the gas
station, and the two spoke often.
“He was passionate about what he did,” the
49-year-old said, adding, “We’re still in
shock. ... It’s a huge loss for his family. It’s
a huge loss for this area.
“You’re talking about a guy that made a
difference,” Mr. McCullar said.""
http://www.wsj.com/articles/texas-sheriffs-deputy-shot-from-behind-killed-at-gas-station-1440853306