HOUSTON — A man is in custody after shooting at Houston police officers outside a home in Kingwood Sunday afternoon, according to the Houston Police Department.
Officers responded after they received two calls regarding an assault and possible shooting at a home on Babbling Creek Drive near W. Lake Houston Pkwy.
HPD Assistant Chief Jessica Anderson said a neighbor told dispatch a man outside the home, identified as 29-year-old Byron Hall, told them to call the police.
When officers got to the scene, they immediately started taking fire, according to Anderson.
"It appeared that the suspect was waiting outside in an ambush-style, waiting for the officers to arrive to shoot at them," Anderson said.
She said an officer's vehicle sustained seven shots from multiple calibers. At some point, the Hall stopped shooting and approached officers with his hands up and was detained.
When officers went inside the home, they found two children, uninjured, hiding in a closet upstairs. A woman, identified as Taylor Ben, was found dead inside from a gunshot wound.
Hall appeared before a judge Monday night. Prosecutors said Hall shot and killed Ben, his sister.
Prosecutors said Hall was already on deferred adjudication for an aggravated assault on a public servant when this happened.
His bond was set at more than a million dollars. If he posts bond, he'll be placed on house arrest.
Neighbors said they were surprised and when they first heard a loud noise didn't expect it to be a gunshot.
"Who thinks of a gunshot here in Kingwood?" neighbor Gary said.
Gary lives a few houses down from where it all happened. He was sitting inside his truck getting ready to head out to the grocery store then realized the loud noise was a gunshot.
“It wasn't long after that that three police cruisers pulled up and they jumped out of their vehicles with guns drawn,” Gary said.
Gary witnessed the suspect being arrested by officers.
“The police were yelling at him to, hit, you know, get on the ground, which he eventually did," Gary said.
Officers believe the suspect may have been experiencing a mental crisis based on what he was saying to them.
The suspect, the victim, and the two children were related, according to Anderson. She said the woman was in her 20s.
While police continue investigating, Gary and others in the neighborhood are thinking of those impacted by what happened.
“It’s just a sad, sad thing. Their relatives now no longer alive,” Gary said.