A man has been charged in an incident where he was shot by an HPD officer while allegedly attempting to run him over near the Galleria.
The situation happened at 5000 Westheimer Road around 5:20 p.m. on Sunday, May 25.
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The driver, Maxie Ray Whitaker, 42, faces charges of aggravated assault of a peace officer.
OUR FIRST REPORT: Man shot after trying to run over officer in front of The Galleria on Westheimer Road, HPD says
Tuesday afternoon, authorities released more information about the situation that led to the shooting.
Off-duty HPD officers were working an extra employment job at a business in the 5000 block of Westheimer Sunday evening, when they were alerted to a blue Nissan Versa in the area. Authorities suspected the vehicle of being involved in a recent jugging.
One HPD sergeant and two officers located the Versa and attempted to stop it to make contact with the driver. Before the officers could reach the driver, he drove the car into oncoming traffic.
The officers pursued the car, and when it temporarily stopped in traffic, they attempted to remove the suspect from the vehicle.
The man refused to exit and continued advancing the car into traffic, striking another vehicle. This caused the sergeant to become pinned inside the driver’s side door of the suspect’s vehicle.
While still attempting to flee, the man hit a second vehicle, further pinning the sergeant. At that point, the sergeant shot his service weapon multiple times, hitting the man behind the wheel of the car.
The suspect then drove over the median and stopped the car at the sidewalk on the opposite side of the road.
Officers rendered aid, and the suspect was transported to a local hospital in critical condition by the Houston Fire Department.
HPD Sergeant R. Marquez was transported to Memorial Hermann Hospital-Texas Medical Center for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. He has been with the department since May 2001.
The Harris County District Attorney’s Office was contacted and accepted charges of aggravated assault on a peace officer against Whitaker.
As is customary in HPD officer-involved shooting incidents within Houston city limits, this case is being investigated.