FAIRFIELD, Texas: A Texas state trooper was shot and killed during a traffic stop in East Texas on Thanksgiving.
The Texas Department of Public Safety released a statement on its Twitter account Thursday night identifying the trooper as Damon Allen, 41. DPS said Allen joined the department in 2002 and was married with three children.
The agency also said it will file capital murder charges against Dabrett Black, 32, of Lindale, Texas.
Allen was shot and killed before 4 p.m. Thursday during a traffic stop on Interstate 45 near Fairfield, about 90 miles (145 kilometers) south of Dallas, according to DPS. The department said Allen was shot with a rifle and died at the scene. The suspect then fled.
Hours after the shooting, the Waller County Sheriff’s Office said the suspect’s vehicle was spotted in Hempstead, about 177 kilometers south of Fairfield. The sheriff’s office said on its Facebook page that shots were fired, but did not indicate who opened fire.
Black was apprehended a short time later. The Department of Public Safety said he’s being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
KYTX-TV reported in July that Black was charged with evading arrest, reckless driving and aggravated assault against a public servant following a police chase in Smith County.
Several Texas officials reacted to Allen’s death. In a tweet, US Sen. Ted Cruz offered “prayers for the family and loved ones” of the trooper.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called Allen’s shooting death a “heinous crime” in a statement Thursday. Abbott also expressed his “most sincere condolences” to the trooper’s family.
Texas trooper killed during Thanksgiving traffic stop; suspect in custody
Texas trooper killed during Thanksgiving traffic stop; suspect in custody
Trump ‘very disappointed’ with UK’s Starmer for blocking use of air bases, Telegraph says
- UK PM then said bases could be used in “defensive” operations
- Trump says it took “too long” for Starmer to change his mind
LONDON: Donald Trump said he was “very disappointed” with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for not allowing the US to use the Diego Garcia air base to carry out strikes on Iran, the Daily Telegraph quoted the US president as saying in an interview.
Britain had reportedly initially denied the US permission to conduct air strikes from its bases, but on Sunday evening Starmer said he was accepting a request for their use in any “defensive” strikes the US wanted to make against Iranian targets.
In an interview published on Monday Trump told the British newspaper that it took “too long” for Starmer to change his mind.
“That’s probably never happened between our countries before,” he told the Telegraph, adding: “It sounds like he was worried about the legality.”
Trump said Starmer should have approved from the get-go the American use of Diego Garcia — a strategically important US-UK air base in the Indian Ocean — saying Iran was responsible for killing “a lot of people from your country.”
Britain was not involved in the joint US-Israel air strikes on Iran that killed the country’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday.
Since attacks on Iran started on Saturday, Iran has been targeting Gulf countries with missiles, and on Sunday an Iranian-made drone hit Britain’s RAF Akrotiri base in Cyprus, causing limited damage and no casualties.
Trump said it was “useful” that the US would now be able to launch operations from Diego Garcia, as he also criticized a deal Starmer has made over the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, where Diego Garcia is based.
