Dallas police are investigating an officer-involved shooting that left one person dead Monday afternoon on the city's south side.[[291302011,L]]
The shooting was first reported at about 1:30 p.m. near a Flying J truck stop along the 7400 block of Bonnie View Road.
A uniformed off-duty officer working at the truck stop was investigating reports of gunfire nearby at the corner of Riverside Road and Bonnie View Road when, according to Dallas police, the officer noticed someone running in his direction and placed that person in custody.
A Dodge pickup truck then jumped the curb and drove toward the pair at a high rate of speed, according to Maj. Jeff Cotner.
"The officer perceived the speed and direction of travel of the vehicle as a threat to himself and his detainee, so he discharged his weapon, striking the driver," said Cotner.
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Shortly after 5 p.m., Dallas police confirmed the man driving the pickup was pronounced dead at Baylor Medical Center in Dallas.
Dallas police said the officer involved in the shooting, Officer Aaron Tolerton, was not injured.
The family of the man who was shot and killed identified him as 45-year-old Desmond Luster and said he was only defending his home.
The family told NBC 5 three people had robbed Luster's home, which is in the neighborhood behind the Flying J, and Luster was chasing the robbers in his pickup truck, driving at a high rate of speed.
Luster did have a gun on him, and he did fire his weapon at the robbers, the family said, but he was licensed to carry.
His family said Luster was a working man who helped serve warrants throughout Texas, and they said this was all a horrible mistake.
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"I can tell you that our officer is very distraught and upset by the circumstances of this incident," Cotner said.
Tolerton was placed on administrative leave per departmental policy.
NBC 5's Jocelyn Lockwood and Johnny Archer contributed to this report.
