Deputy Shot in the Face with a Pellet Gun

Two teens have been detained

A local deputy shot in the face with a pellet gun could be back to work less than 24 hours after it happened. 

Investigators believe two 15-year-old boys shot at the deputy’s squad car and two other vehicles along Farm-to-Market Road 664 and South Gate Drive in Ellis County.

Deputies said this isn’t the first time one of the teens has been in trouble. Investigators said they’ve been out to the same house last year for a report of a teen firing a BB gun.  Now, that same teen and a friend are in custody accused of shooting a deputy and other cars with pellets.

Ellis County deputies responded in force to a call out from a fellow co-worker that he’d just been shot in the face.  The deputy had been driving down FM 664 with his window down.

At first, the deputy thought he’d been hit by a bullet.  The pellet grazed his face right by his eye.  Fellow deputies said he was covered in blood and calling out for help.

At almost the same time, the driver of another car called 911 to report his car had been hit, too.  An 11-year-old inside the car was cut when the window shattered.

A third driver said the teens shot their car as well in exactly the same spot.

Deputies tracked the two teens to a nearby home, and said they found them armed with a couple pellet guns.

“I’m glad they got caught, and I hope they’ll deal with it,” said Leonard Fagan. “I think it’s terrible."

Investigators discovered not only did the deputy get shot, they found another pellet hit his squad car. 

Detectives said the teens confessed to the shootings and are now facing felony charges of aggravated assault on a peace officer, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and criminal mischief.

The sheriff’s office said the situation could have turned out much worse: the pellet could have hit the deputy’s eye and any of the drivers could have crashed.

“I think the parents need to get a better handle on their kids,” said Fagan.

Investigators think other cars in the area may have been hit, and the drivers don’t know it.  If so, the teens could face even more charges.

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