No Suspect Identified in Series of Houston Shootings

St. John Barned-Smith from the Houston Chronicle analyzes a series of apparently random shootings happening across Houston.

By Laura RiceFebruary 27, 2015 10:23 am

A string of shootings have people in the Houston area questioning their safety. Each time, a person in a dark SUV drives up to a man on the street and then, without a word, opens fire. One person has died and two were injured. Saint John Barned-Smith  has been covering this story for the Houston Chronicle.

Houston police are still puzzled as to what the motive could be and who exactly they’re looking for. The Houston Chronicle has received some criticism for not revealing the race of the suspect. However, Barned-Smith says that this is purely due to the information they’ve received from authorities.

“The police put out a description of the suspect, identified him as black, and then they followed it up saying he was possibly mixed race, possibly Hispanic and possibly white,” Barned-Smith says. “So despite the fact that there was a composite sketch, their description didn’t really clarify things at all. That’s why we didn’t put that in the story.”

From outside of a country club to a McDonanlds, “these [shootings] aren’t happening in very isolated spots,” Barned-Smith says.

These horrific events call the mind the terrifying D.C. Sniper shootings that happened in 2002. Police are shying away from calling this a shooting spree or serial shootings; rather, at this point, police are just asking people to be careful and to be aware of their surroundings.

This story was prepared with assistance by Mackenzie Dunn.

[cq_vc_thumbnailcaption images=”3074″ minheight=”100%” smallheight=”100%” imageposition=”top” backgroundcolor=”#efefef” autoplayspeed=”4000″ imagewidth=”480″ captiontitle=”Police sketch of the suspect” caption=”Houston authorities still search for the gunman.”]