Cop heading to call hits, kills man in road, Texas officials say. ‘Incredibly tragic’
A man walking to a friend’s apartment was struck and killed by a Texas police officer responding to a call, according to local news outlets.
Family and friends identified the man as Caleb Swafford to KHOU and KTRK.
“What happened tonight, it was tragic. It’s unexplainable when you’re close to somebody like that,” friend Raymond Broussard told KTRK. “This is serious. This is very hurtful. This is a lot of pain, and I’m still at a point like, I really don’t understand what’s going on.”
Brother Cameron Swafford described Caleb as “life of the party.”
“He made everybody laugh just being himself,” he told KTRK.
A captain with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office said investigators were called to the fatal collision at 5500 Aldine Bender Road at about 1 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 5.
“Preliminary info is an HPD officer in a patrol vehicle hit a male pedestrian who is deceased at the scene,” the Houston Police Department said in a tweet. “The officer was not injured.”
The officer was traveling west down the middle lane at about midnight when he struck the pedestrian, Harris County authorities said during a recorded media briefing. The cop turned around and tried to save the man.
Vehicular Crimes Division Chief Sean Teare called the incident, which the Harris County Sheriff’s Office and District Attorney’s Office is helping investigate, “incredibly tragic.”
“This is not a well-lit area, but we’ve got to figure out all of the different facets that went into this crash,” Teare told media at the scene.
“Our understanding right now is the officer was responding to a call,” Teare said. “It wasn’t what we call a code one, so he was not utilizing his lights and sirens. And because of that, it doesn’t appear that speed was a factor at this time, but we don’t have a definitive speed yet. We will, but we don’t have one right now.”
The investigation findings will be sent to a grand jury to determine if any charges will be issued, he said.
Authorities have not publicly confirmed the man’s identity. Teare said the pedestrian was believed to have been in the middle lane of the westbound lane when he was hit by the marked patrol vehicle.
The involved officer has been with the Houston Police Department for two years, officials said. He has been placed on administrative leave, which is likely to include desk duty.
This story was originally published January 5, 2023 at 2:05 PM with the headline "Cop heading to call hits, kills man in road, Texas officials say. ‘Incredibly tragic’."