The Times Herald (Norristown, PA)
Police say Texas officer’s killer likely gunned down 2nd man
DALLAS » A gunman who mortally wounded a suburban Dallas police officer likely killed a second man before barricading himself in an apartment and randomly firing his weapon during the standoff, authorities said Thursday.
It’s believed that Brandon De McCall, 26, fatally shot an acquaintance at an apartment complex in Richardson on Wednesday evening, according to officials. Responding officers found the body of Rene Gamez, 30, on a landing and then went to a nearby apartment where they encountered McCall.
Officer David Sherrard, 37, was shot as he entered the apartment. He fell back out of the apartment and was pulled away by other officers, according to Richardson police Chief Jim Spivey. Sherrard, a married father of two daughters, later died at a hospital.
Sherrard is the first to die on duty in the 63-year history of the Richardson department, Spivey said during a news conference.
“It’s the hardest day we’ve ever had,” Spivey said. “We’re not doing well.”
McCall eventually surrendered to police early Thursday and was taken into custody. Witnesses said McCall repeatedly shouted “I’m sorry” as he was being led away.
He was being held Thursday at the Collin County jail on a charge of capital murder of a peace officer. Online jail records don’t indicate an attorney for him.
It’s believed McCall shot Gamez but the investigation is continuing, Plano police spokesman David Tilley said. Police in Plano, which borders Richardson, are leading the investigation.
Gamez lived in the apartment where McCall barricaded himself and the two knew one another, but the extent of their relationship wasn’t clear Thursday, according to Tilley.
Collin County court records show McCall has been arrested at least once before by Richardson police, in 2016 on a drug possession charge.
Police in nearby Garland arrested him in March and May of 2009 for marijuana possession charges and in January 2010 for unauthorized use of a vehicle, according to a spokesman for the Garland Police Department. The 2009 charges were dismissed after an apparent plea deal and probation was completed, Dallas County court records show. The vehicle arrest was dismissed before charges were filed, according to police records.
A Dallas police report says he was taken to a mental health facility last year after threatening to jump off a bridge and telling officers that he wanted to be taken to a doctor and “put to sleep permanently,” according to KTVT-TV in Dallas.
A Richardson police cruiser served as a makeshift memorial for Sherrard with people leaving flowers and other items Thursday.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott offered his condolences on Twitter.
“The hearts and soul of Texas mourn with you. Your loss is a loss to all law enforcement and everyone in our great state,” the governor said.
This version of the story has been corrected to show that McCall was arrested in Garland for drug charges in 2009 and vehicle charges in 2010. A previous version of the story cited information in The Dallas Morning News that had the dates reversed.
Associated Press writer Claudia Lauer in Dallas contributed to this report.
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