A Fort Worth police officer was injured by glass in a shootout with a man suspected of being involved in a previous shooting, the department says.
"We had a coward try and take out one of my officers tonight," said Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes.
At about 8:20 p.m. Sunday, Fort Worth police were notified of a "possible suspect vehicle" related to a shooting that took place Saturday near the 4800 block of Miller Avenue. The officer recognized the vehicle from the description and pulled his cruiser behind the driver.
A witness told police they saw the driver stop and get out of the vehicle with his hands up and that when the officer exited his cruiser the driver reached for a gun and fired at the officer several times. The driver then got back in his vehicle and drove away as the officer returned fire, according to police.
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The officer believed he had been shot, but it was later determined flying glass had injured him. He was taken to a local hospital and released on Sunday evening, police said.
When the driver fled, the officer followed him for a mile before the patrol vehicle became disabled because of the gunfire, Noakes said.
"He believed he had been shot. He believed he had taken gunfire because so many rounds came. He had glass that had hurt him. But even though he thought he had been shot he continued to go after this person," Noakes said. "These are the kind of people in the Fort Worth Police Department that go out and serve every day and every night. Some people get tired of me saying my officers put their lives on the line every day, but it's the truth."
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Other officers continued to follow the driver and he was eventually taken into custody. The driver has not been identified.
The Fort Worth Police Department's investigation into the shooting is ongoing.
