GHOLSON, Texas — McLennan County Sheriff Parnell McNamara confirmed 55-year-old Leon Minniefield was shot and killed by police in Gholson after firing his gun at deputies on Monday, Sept. 4.
According to McNamara, deputies responded to a shooting in which two people were shot just after 3 p.m. in the 1000 block of Wagner Road.
On Sept. 5, McNamara spoke with 6 News and stated the following:
"There was an individual yesterday in the Gholson area on Wagner Road, who, for whatever reason, shot his brother and I believe a cousin and shot at a third person, but didn't hit them."
According to McNamara, the two victims were airlifted to the hospital while the shooter, Minniefield, barricaded himself in the house.
A perimeter was set up by the McLennan County and Hill County Sheriff's Offices, Texas DPS and multiple other law enforcement agencies, McNamara said.
"The subject came out of the house with guns and opened fire on our deputies and DPS officers. So, at that point, the officers returned fire," McNamara explained.
McNamara says no deputies were injured and it's the Sheriff's Office's understanding that the gunshot wounds the victims received were not life-threatening but were still significant.
Now the Gholson community is trying to make sense of the events.
Claudette Gaither has lived in the city all her life and says this tragedy will have a profound impact on the entire community.
Gaither says something like this is out of the norm and that Minniefield and his family are well-known.
"They were born and raised here," Gaither said. "We were all sitting there just chatting, never knowing that a week and a half, two weeks later, one of us would be gone. Life is short, and we better love while we can."
Gaither says she believes in the power of prayer and hopes this tragic moment brings everyone closer together.
McNamara says without the help of the multiple agencies who responded to the scene things might have looked different.
"All the other agencies that did show up to back us up was unbelievable, and that's the way it is in Central Texas," McNamara added.
The Sheriff's Office is currently investigating the shooting as an attempted murder. The Texas Rangers are investigating the officer-involved shooting.
6 News will continue to update this story as the investigation continues
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