A Grand Prairie homeowner was shot in the leg by police early Friday after officers responded to the wrong address, prompting questions about legal consequences for both the homeowner and the officers involved.
The incident began around 1:45 a.m. when Grand Prairie police were dispatched to a reported disturbance on the 3000 block of Holly Hill Drive. Due to an error in the department’s 911 dispatch system, which auto-populated an incorrect address, officers arrived at the home of Thomas Simpson instead of the intended location, according to a police statement.
Police said officers knocked on Simpson’s door for about five minutes from a “well-illuminated area.” When Simpson, alerted by his dogs’ aggressive barking, opened his garage door armed with a .45-caliber pistol, officers reported he took “an aggressive firing stance” and pointed the weapon at them.
“Fearing for their lives,” police fired, striking Simpson in the leg. Simpson, who walked unassisted to an ambulance, was treated at a hospital and released with non-severe injuries.
Simpson, however, told FOX 4 KDFW that the officers never announced themselves as police, leading him to believe intruders were at his home.
“I raised my pistol. I don’t know who it is, I’m assuming it’s criminals, car thieves, whatever,” he told WFAA.
He recounted noticing a police badge as the garage door rose, prompting him to drop his weapon.
“And that’s why I dropped my pistol like, okay, let’s figure this out, and then I get shot,” Simpson said, per NBC 5DFW.
He claimed officers fired eight shots, which he deemed excessive, with bullets directed toward his home where his wife was in bed.
“My wife was in bed, and those shots are just going straight towards her,” he added, per WFAA.
The Grand Prairie Police Department is referring a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon against a peace officer, a felony, to the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office for Simpson’s actions. However, former Dallas County prosecutor Russell Wilson, speaking to FOX 4, noted Texas’ strong self-defense laws may complicate prosecution.
“Texas has very, very strong self-defense laws, and those protect residents in their home,” Wilson said.
He added that the officers’ presence at the wrong address and their failure to identify themselves, as Simpson alleged, could undermine charges against him.
“That’s going to be a challenge, I think, from a prosecutorial perspective, to find criminal conduct there,” Wilson said.
The Dallas County District Attorney’s Office, per its policy, is investigating the officer-involved shooting through its Officer-Involved Shooting Team, with a parallel administrative probe by the Grand Prairie Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards. Prosecutors will decide whether to present evidence to a grand jury to determine if a crime occurred, a process Wilson estimated could take weeks.
Wilson emphasized that body camera footage will be critical, particularly in assessing “how the facts and circumstances unfolded immediately prior to the shooting, who shot and from what location, and what was their ability to see,” per Fox 4.
Simpson expressed relief that no one was killed but voiced frustration over the lack of an apology from the department.
“I understand they’re trying to do their job, but they need to do better,” he said, according to NBC 5.
Simpson plans to file a lawsuit, which would be handled in civil court.
His daughter, Antonia Simpson, described the incident as terrifying, fearing she could have lost her father, per WFAA.
Neighbor Chacara Williams, witnessing the heavy police presence captured on nearby surveillance footage, expressed concern about the error.
“That’s very concerning because it could have been me. What if I would’ve reacted to something knocking on my window, thinking it was an intruder?” she said, NBC 5 reported.
The original 911 call’s details remain undisclosed, and it is unclear if Simpson has retained legal counsel.