A Texas gunman who described himself as a “sovereign citizen” who is not bound by U.S. law died in a shootout with police during a livestream on Facebook.
Patrick Hurst, 47, told a Harris County deputy who pulled him into his car Sunday in Houston for an expired registration and drove off that he was a member of an extremist movement that delegitimized the government. For this reason, he said he would not follow their orders. institution.
Shortly after police learned he had a possible out-of-county felony warrant for eluding police, he drove away before being stopped with spike strips.
Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said Hurst then broadcast on Facebook Live that he pulled out a handgun, jumped out of his car and confronted pursuing officers, before firing first at them. He is said to have died.
A bystander who was buying groceries nearby was also injured, and bullets rained down on the private school bus, which fortunately had no children on board.
“If he had just complied, things could have been very different,” Sheriff Gonzalez said.
Hearst’s sister, Angela Washington told KTRK She said she was on the phone with her brother and was following his livestream before the shots rang out.
She recalled trying to convince her brother to stop.
“What we saw [Sunday]I feel like he had a mental breakdown,” she said of her brother, who had struggled with mental health issues in the past.
The sheriff suggested this was just the latest conflict with members of the Sovereign Citizens Movement, which the Anti-Defamation League describes as a radical opposition group.
“In many cases, my Lords…it shows that these situations can escalate into violence,” Gonzalez said.
“According to their beliefs, they are not under the authority of the federal government or law enforcement.”
But Mr Hearst’s sister said the family had never heard her brother describe himself as part of a movement or expressing extremist views.
“He doesn’t hate the police,” Washington told police, adding that he didn’t even know his brother owned a gun until Sunday.
“He was always doing God’s work. He was always doing our father’s work,” his sister said. “It’s honest to God’s truth. So this was a big shock.”
