Son Of Patrick Warren Says He Never Called For Armed Police
More details are coming out about the fatal shooting of 52-year-old Patrick Warren, Sr. in Killeen, Texas.
In an interview with TMZ, Patrick Warren Jr. explained his father had a mental health episode, and the police weren’t called the day of the shooting. Warren Jr. said they called for a mental health officer, which is who came to the scene for a previous incident, but a police officer arrived with a weapon.
Warren Jr. said when he saw officer Reynaldo Contreras with a gun, he immediately told him no firearms.
“The first thing I said, I said, ‘Hey, my dad is going through something, please no firearms. You could feel the energy was different than before. He [Patrick Warren Sr.] wasn’t violent or anything, so I didn’t know why he [Contreras] was sent out.”
Warren said he is now afraid to call for help again, “Now, I feel like I couldn’t call anyone. If something was going on with my special needs little brother, I wouldn’t even feel comfortable calling a police officer because I’ve seen what happened with my father when he was nonviolent. I don’t feel comfortable calling anyone for help at this point.”
Watch the interview below:
On Wednesday (Jan. 13), a Jan. 10 video surfaced on social media showing Contreras, a five-year veteran of the department, officer at the door before briefly entering the house and then stepping back outside. Warren is then seen stepping out with his hands in the air.
The shooting by the officer can be heard on cellphone footage taken by a bystander but is out of the view of the surveillance camera.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, a resident, which appears to be Patrick Warren Jr., repeatedly says, “I told you, don’t use a gun.”
Warren was taken to Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center, where he passed away.
Attorney Lee Merritt, who represents the family, said in a press release that Warren’s family had “contacted mental health professionals for help” after noticing changes in his behavior.
According to Merritt, Warren “initially greeted officers, but asked them to leave his property.” The officer used a Taser in an attempt to subdue Warren and then “fired his first shot into Patrick and (then) redirected his weapon towards Patrick’s wife, Barbara, telling her to get back from Patrick.”