Arlington authorities are currently investigating an alleged self-defense shooting that resulted in the death of a 30-year-old man on Tuesday night.
Officers responded around 11 p.m. to reports of a shooting at an apartment complex in Arlington in the 2900 block of Forest Hollow Lane. According to a police press release, a woman reported that her child’s father had been shot by one of her relatives.
The relative remained at the scene until police arrived.
During the investigation, detectives discovered a history of domestic violence between the deceased and the woman, whom the suspect claimed was being strangled at the time of the shooting, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
The relative, who has not been named publicly, said that the shooting was justified to protect both himself and the woman involved, according to Arlington police.
The man who died was identified by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner as Cameron Deandre McGowan. He was pronounced dead at approximately 12:45 a.m. Wednesday at a local hospital.
Police confirmed that there was a documented history of domestic violence between McGowan and the woman, with previous assault family violence charges listed in Dallas County court records.
No arrests have been made as the investigation continues. The case will be forwarded to the Tarrant County District Attorney’s office for further review, according to The Dallas Morning News.
The Texas Advocacy Project reported this year that one in three Texans will encounter domestic violence at some point in their lives. Young women and girls aged 16 to 24 are particularly affected, experiencing “intimate partner violence” at nearly three times the national average.
Domestic violence incidents have been an ongoing problem in nearby Dallas. In 2020, felony domestic violence assaults in Dallas rose by 13.6% compared to 2019, which had also seen an increase from 2018, according to a press release from the City.
Like many other police departments in the area, the Dallas Police Department has been hampered in its crime-fighting efforts by a chronic shortage of sworn officers. DPD only has about 3,000 officers in the field, despite a City analysis that calls for about 4,000 to adequately manage crime in the jurisdiction.
Adding to its challenges, city leaders approved a DPD budget of only about $654 million this fiscal year, far less than the budgets of other high-crime cities such as Chicago and New York City.
