Tarrant deputy shot 3 times in Fort Worth; suspect dead after SWAT standoff, police say

An armed child sexual assault suspect who was barricaded in a home in north Fort Worth died Wednesday after he shot a Tarrant County sheriff’s deputy who tried to execute three felony arrest warrants, authorities said.

Deputy Todd Tipton was involved in a close-combat gunfight with the suspect and was shot three times. The deputy suffered a grazing wound to the back of the head, one wound to an arm and one to his lower back. He was taken to John Peter Smith Hospital and was released within hours, authorities said.

“It’s just miraculous. Just miraculous,” Sheriff Bill Waybourn said outside the hospital.

During a standoff, Fort Worth police negotiators spoke with the suspect, who was barricaded in the home in the 2900 block of Elinor Street where deputies went to serve the arrest warrants, Chief Deputy Jennifer Gabbert said.

Fort Worth SWAT officers breached the home after the suspect claimed he had hostages, which apparently was false, Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes said. SWAT team officers entered the house and exchanged gunfire with the man, Noakes said.

Police said they could not say Wednesday afternoon whether the suspect was killed by officers or by a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Noakes said SWAT entered the house only because the suspect referred to hostages and that officers would not have breached it and would have continued trying to negotiate had the man not given them reason to believe he was going to hurt or kill someone else.

“There is a violent criminal who was actively trying to kill deputies and officers today, and he is no longer a threat,” Noakes said.

Tipton is a veteran deputy assigned to a unit whose members search for fugitives and execute arrest warrants.

Before the deputy was released, Waybourn said: “He’s alert. He’s conscious. He’s talking. He’s seeing his family, and we’re pretty happy about that.”

The suspect, whose name has not been released, was a 40-year-old man. He fired upon deputies from inside the home as they approached the residence about noon, according to the sheriff’s office. Authorities said they believed the suspect was wounded when law enforcement returned fire.

Waybourn said the warrants were on charges of sexual assault of a child, indecency with a child and unlawful restraint of a child.

Leah Wagner, a Fort Worth police spokesperson, said about 4 p.m. that there was no active ongoing threat to the community but that the scene was still active.

“Today has been kind of a scary day for everyone in this community,” she said before reassuring that there is no longer any danger.

Noakes said residents who were evacuated from the neighborhood during the standoff were being allowed back into their homes.

Fort Worth police and Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office SWAT officers responded to the scene along with officers from numerous other North Texas police departments.

Haltom City police said in a social media post shortly before 1 p.m. that officers were “actively engaged” with the suspect. Residents were asked to avoid the area between 28th Street and Chesser Boyer Road, just west of Haltom City, and residents already in the area were told to shelter in place, police said.

“Every time you go out to serve a warrant, there’s somebody who knows they’re going to jail that might not want to go to jail and it’s very dangerous,” Gabbert said.

Fort Worth police will lead the investigation into the shooting, she said. The standoff was near the border with Haltom City, within the Fort Worth city limits.

“Please join me in praying for our Deputy and all of the men and women” of the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office, Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare said in a post on X.

Gov. Greg Abbott asked Texans to join him in “praying for Deputy Tipton’s swift recovery and for his loved ones.”

“Our hearts go out to Tarrant County Sheriff’s Deputy Todd Tipton who was shot in the line of duty earlier today,” Abbott wrote in a post on X. “Violence against police officers will never be tolerated in Texas.”

Two other first responders who assisted during the standoff were treated at the scene for minor injuries, according to MedStar. The SWAT officers were injured by glass when they broke a window to make entry to the house, Noakes said.

A Star-Telegram photojournalist heard what sounded like several gunshots during the standoff.

According to the Fort Worth Fire Department, at 1:15 p.m. there were reports of smoke coming from the home. Firefighters staged in the area until they were cleared to respond. A working fire was declared at 2:14 p.m. but was quickly brought under control, the department said. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Bonnie Brae Elementary School was using a controlled release Wednesday afternoon because of the police standoff. A Star-Telegram photojournalist heard an announcement from the school instructing students to gather with their belongings in the library for the controlled release.

Officers from Fort Worth, Richland Hills, North Richland Hills, and Tarrant County constables were at the scene.

Another Tarrant County sheriff’s deputy, Brent Brown, was shot in the line of duty in November. Brown is back at work and was at the standoff scene on Wednesday, Waybourn said.

Wednesday’s incident was one of several standoffs involving law enforcement in Tarrant County in the past week, including incidents that shut down Davis Boulevard in North Richland Hills and Texas 183 in Bedford on Saturday. The highway in Bedford was closed for several hours again Tuesday night while police responded to a man in distress, who was taken to a hospital for help.

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Star-Telegram photojournalists Joel Solis and Chris Torres contributed to this report.