Texas Tech officer killed; student, 19, in jail
Shooting happened as teen was being booked
DALLAS — A Texas Tech University student confessed to killing a campus police officer who had been booking him on a drug possession charge, telling detectives he had done “something illogical” and that “he was the one that shot their friend,” an investigator said.
In an affidavit released Tuesday, Detective Thomas Bonds of the Lubbock city police department said Hollis Daniels III had confessed to killing Officer
Floyd East Jr. after his recapture Monday night.
Campus Police Chief Kyle Bonath said at a news conference Tuesday that his department had received reports of a student acting erratically who might have a weapon. University officials said East went to Daniels’ room to perform a welfare check and found evidence of drugs and drug paraphernalia. East arrested Daniels and took him to the campus police station to book him.
According to Bonds, the 19-yearold wasn’t handcuffed while East was processing the paperwork. Another officer left the room and then heard a loud bang. When he returned, he found East mortally wounded and Daniels gone. East’s body camera was also missing, but his service weapon was still holstered.
Bonath said Daniels “pulled a gun” and shot East at the station, but he didn’t specify whether it was a gun Daniels had on him or one that belonged to the department. He also didn’t say whether East checked Daniels for weapons when arresting him, and he didn’t take questions.
The campus was locked down for about an hour Monday night, and the school’s more than 36,000 students were ordered to shelter in place during the search.
Daniels was recaptured following a foot chase near the police station. He had the body camera and a handgun, Bonds wrote.
Daniels, who is from the San Antonio suburb of Seguin, is charged with capital murder of a peace officer and is being held in the Lubbock County jail on a $5 million bond. Online jail records don’t indicate whether he has an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
Daniels is the son of H. A. “Dan” Daniels, a well-known figure in Seguin.
Texas passed a law last year allowing students with concealed carry permits to bring guns into university classrooms and buildings. But a person must be at least 21 years old to get a concealed carry permit in Texas, so Daniels wouldn’t qualify.
The state Democratic Party apologized Tuesday for a tweet it sent linking the campus carry law to Monday’s shooting. The party had tweeted that allowing guns on college campuses “was a dumb and dangerous idea” but later backtracked and deleted the tweet.