While law enforcement officials have been tight-lipped about Monday’s police chase and shootout in Dallas and its connection to a Kaufman County murder investigation, family, friends, and neighbors of those involved have come forward to identify the suspect and victim.
On Monday afternoon, Richardson police attempted to stop a vehicle believed to be connected to a homicide in Kaufman County. The driver refused to stop, leading officers in a chase and shootout that spilled over into Dallas, ending along the frontage road of southbound Central Expressway near the I-635 interchange, as The Dallas Express reported.
Police said the driver of the black SUV, whom relatives have identified as Donald Ingram of Forney, shot the female passenger in the front seat several times before turning the gun on himself. The as-yet-unidentified woman was transported to the hospital in critical condition, and Ingram was pronounced dead at the scene. Three children in the backseat of the vehicle — aged 17, 15, and 5 — were not physically harmed in the incident.
Police confirmed that the driver of the vehicle was a suspect in connection with a murder in Kaufman County but did not provide any further details. However, friends and neighbors told NBC 5 DFW that they immediately recognized the black SUV in the incident as belonging to 51-year-old Michelle Ingram, who was discovered dead in her Forney home earlier on Monday. The vehicle was reported missing when her body was found by a family friend.
Michelle Ingram was the wife of Donald Ingram.
“She seemed like a nice person,” neighbor Curtis Kimmons said of Michelle Ingram, per NBC 5. “It’s horrible, that is horrible.”
“Michelle was a beautiful person who inspired everyone she came in contact with … she did not deserve what happened to her,” family members told NBC 5.
Kelly Webster, who has known the Ingram family for years, said a neighbor texted her about a disturbance at the Ingram home on Monday. She immediately texted the family to see if they were okay.
“There was no response or anything,” Webster said, per NBC 5. “And it wasn’t until later that the neighbor told me about the news report.”
When she saw news coverage of the police chase later, Webster immediately recognized the vehicle as Michelle Ingram’s.
The investigations into the murder and the police chase and shootout are ongoing, and a spokesperson for the Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office said that more information would be provided soon.
In Dallas, violent crime continues to be a serious problem despite a concentrated police effort focused on reducing such criminal activity. As of September 17, 139 criminal homicides and 4,365 aggravated assaults have been reported in the city this year, according to the City of Dallas crime analytics dashboard.
The Dallas Police Department has been hampered in its crime-fighting efforts by a chronic shortage of officers, operating with approximately 25% fewer officers than is recommended for a jurisdiction of its size, according to a City analysis.
DPD’s budget — $654 million this fiscal year — is significantly less than those of other high-crime cities, such as Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City.
According to monthly reports by the Metroplex Civic & Business Association, the crime rate in nearby Fort Worth’s downtown area is considerably lower than in Downtown Dallas. The City of Fort Worth employs dedicated police units and private security guards to patrol its city center.
