RODNEY JOHNSON

Houston Police Department Texas

End of Watch: Thursday, September 21, 2006
Biographical Info:

Age: 40

Tour of Duty: 12 years

Badge Number: Not available
Incident Details:

Cause of Death: Gunfire

Date of Incident: Thursday, September 21, 2006

Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type

Suspect Info: In custody

Officer Rodney Johnson was shot and killed after taking an illegal alien into custody during a traffic stop. He had stopped a large white pickup truck occupied by a man and woman on Randolph at Braniff, just south of Hobby Airport, at about 5:30 pm. After handcuffing the male, he placed him in the backseat of the patrol car and then returned to the driver's seat. The subject in the backseat was able to move his hands to his front, retrieve a concealed handgun, and then shot Officer Johnson in the back of the head four times. Despite being fatally wounded, Officer Johnson was able to push an emergency button, alerting dispatch to the incident. When other officers arrived, the male was still handcuffed and sitting in the patrol car, and the weapon was recovered. The woman who was in the vehicle during the traffic stop had fled but was also located and taken into custody.Officer Johnson was taken to Ben Taub Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officer Johnson was a 12-year member of the Houston Police Department and had previously served as a corrections officer with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, and as a military policeman in the US Army. He is survived by his wife, also a Houston officer, and their three daughters and two sons.