A chase ensued until the suspect, Delbert Lewis McNeil, crashed into a neighborhood fence near Ninth Street and Pittsburg Avenue, where Odessa police arrested him. McNeil was charged with with aggravated assault on a peace officer, aggravated robbery and felony evading, according a statement from Sgt. Sherrie Carruth, Odessa police spokeswoman. McNeil was still being booked Saturday evening into the Ector County Detention Center.
Authorities did not explain what started the conflict, which began between McNeil and an MCH officer at about 2:25 p.m. in the ambulance bay, according to MCH spokesperson Amber Sweeney, who delivered a statement from the scene at the hospital.
A nearby Odessa College police officer who witnessed the conflict came to assist the MCH officer, Sweeney said. Soon after that, police say McNeil stole an Odessa College police vehicle, and the hospital officer fired a shot.
The Odessa Police Department would not identify the officers, deferring to their respective agencies, which did not release their names on Saturday.
According to police radio traffic, the Odessa College police vehicle, a Chevrolet Tahoe, contained weapons that were recovered.
Various police agencies responded to a call of “officer down,” including the Texas Rangers. But Odessa police said they would head the investigation.
Outside the hospital after the incident, Steven Sweeden recalled walking away from the Emergency Room with his fiancé when he heard a gunshot. He said he looked back to see an officer lying in the street while a man sped away in a white police SUV.
“It was just wild,” Sweeden said. “I couldn’t believe it.”
The chase continued for about 10 minutes, ending at a residence near Ninth Street and Pittsburg Avenue, where the Odessa College vehicle crashed through a front yard fence. Neighbors gathered around the crime scene to watch.
“That cop car came around the corner and hit the fence,” said Charlie, a construction worker at the house across the street from the crash, who would only provide his first name. “He jumped out the passenger window and had his hands up. I told my wife to get back, and then the cops got him.”
Felix Rodriguez said he was at his home nearby on Ninth Street and Texas Avenue “when I saw this cop car flying down the street, so I thought he was a cop going to something. Then I saw a bunch of cop cars coming after him from different directions. When he crashed I heard the boom all the way over here. I thought it was a shotgun.”