Police investigate motive in killing of sheriff’s deputy in Texas
Suspect charged with murder
HOUSTON — The black gunman charged with capital murder in the fatal shooting of a white uniformed sheriff’s deputy had a lengthy criminal record going back a decade but never spent more than short stints in jail.
Shannon J. Miles, whose criminal record includes convictions for resisting arrest and disorderly conduct with a firearm, was to be arraigned today in the shooting of Darren Goforth, a 10-year veteran of the Harris County Sheriff ’s Office.
Miles’ arrest Saturday came less than 24 hours after authorities said he ambushed Goforth at a suburban Houston Chevron station.
Harris County Sheriff Ron Hickman said the attack was “clearly unprovoked,” and there is no evidence that Goforth knew Miles.
Investigators have no information from Miles that would shed light on his motive, Hickman said.
“Our assumption is that he (Goforth) was a target because he wore a uniform,” the sheriff said.
The killing comes amid a series of shootings by white police of black suspects in Ferguson, Missouri and elsewhere, which have caused unrest in black communities.
Likewise, Goforth’s killing evoked strong emotions in the local law enforcement community, with Hickman linking it to heightened tension over the treatment of AfricanAmericans by police.
Miles’ criminal record begins in 2005, when he was convicted of criminal mischief, giving false information to police and resisting arrest, according to records.
In 2006, he was convicted of disorderly conduct with a firearm and sentenced to a maximum of 15 days in jail. He was convicted of evading arrest in 2007, and his most recent conviction came in 2009 for again resisting arrest.
Records show that the 30-year-old Houston resident was sentenced to several short stints in jail, anywhere from 10 to 6 days.
Goforth, 47, was pumping gas at a Chevron station Friday night in Cypress, a suburban area northwest of Houston, when the gunman approached him from behind and fired multiple shots, continuing to fire after the deputy had fallen to the ground.
Hickman and Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson pushed back against the criticism of police.
“We’ve heard Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter. Well, cops’ lives matter, too,” Hickman said.
Deray McKesson, a leader in the Black Lives Matter movement, told the Houston Chronicle: “It is unfortunate that Sheriff Hickman has chosen to politicize this tragedy and to attribute the officer’s death to a movement that seeks to end violence.”
A prayer walk and second vigil at the Chevron station where Goforth died occurred Sunday night.