College Station Shooting Update Tuesday 7:40 p.m.: Statement from Family of Hospitalized Houston Woman

7:40 p.m. update:

A statement from the family of Barbara Holdsworth, released by St. Joseph-Bryan:

First and foremost we praise our Heavenly Father for the protection and healing He has provided for Barbara.

We would like to thank the following law enforcement agencies for their bravery and sacrifice: Bryan Fire and Police Departments, College Station Fire and Police Departments, the Brazos County Sheriff’s Office, Brazos County Constables and the Texas Rangers.

We would also like to thank 911 Dispatch, St. Joseph’s EMS crews, doctors and nursing staff, Texas A&M students, Young Life and family and friends for their continued prayers and support.  The outpouring of love from churches in the Brazos Valley and those across the state, as well as prayers from those we don’t personally know, have touched our hearts.

At this time, Barbara is in serious but stable condition.  We continue to ask for prayers for her complete recovery.  Our hearts go out to the families who lost loved ones yesterday; their families remain in our prayers.

Thank you for respecting our privacy during this time.

6:00 p.m. update:

College Station Police announces the crime scene has shrunk to 211 Fidelity, the home address of Thomas Caffall where Monday’s shooting began. Officer Rhonda Seaton says residents living in a two block area were allowed to return home.

Seaton also says funeral arrangements are still being made for Constable Brian Bachmann. An announcement could come Wednesday.

WTAW’s Bill Oliver visits with CSPD Officer Rhonda Seaton.

5:00 p.m. update:

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) _ A county official says a law enforcement officer fatally shot near Texas A&M University while delivering a notice in an eviction case volunteered for the house call even though one of his deputies was set to make it.

Brazos County Justice of the Peace Michael McCleary says 41-year-old county Constable Brian Bachmann “grabbed” the notice from a deputy and made the delivery as “part of his job.”

Authorities say Bachmann and a bystander were killed when 35-year-old Thomas Alton Caffall III opened fire Monday as Bachmann approached the home. Police say officers fatally shot Caffall.

McCleary said Tuesday that Caffall was two months behind on $625 rent, and the notice was for him to appear in court next week to explain the delay. McCleary says eviction would have been next.

4:15 p.m. update:

From the City of Bryan: Governor Perry has authorized flags of all political subdivisions and businesses that wish to participate to lower their flags to half-staff today and tomorrow (Tuesday and Wednesday) and then again on the day of funeral services for Constable Bachmann. Participation is voluntary but Mayor Bienski encourages all Bryan residents and businesses to participate as the entire community joins in expressing sorrow at this time of loss, and to express appreciation for the dedicated service of Constable Bachmann.

Funeral arrangements have not been announced.  Representatives of the Brian Bachmann family say that could take place Wednesday.

The 100 Club of Houston, which provides benefits to the dependents of law enforcement officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty, announced Tuesday a $20,000 check will be given to Bachmann’s family.  Contributions can be made by doing to the 100 Club website (click on this sentence).

2:30 p.m. update:

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) _ An attorney for the family of a gunman who was
among three people killed in a shootout at a home near Texas A&M University says
the gunman had been suffering from “mental issues.”

Attorney W. Tyler Moore declined to elaborate on Tuesday what kind of mental
problems 35-year-old Thomas Alton Caffall III had.

Moore said Caffall’s family had lost contact with him since the spring. Moore
says he had known Caffall since he was 4 years old and that “he wasn’t the same
kid that he used to be.”

Police say Caffall opened fire Monday from inside his College Station home as
he was being served an eviction notice. A law enforcement officer and a
bystander were also killed in the shootout. Four people were injured.

Update from College Station Police Chief Jeff Capps, August 14 at 10 a.m.

College Station Police Chief Jeff Capps told reporters Tuesday morning evidence is still being collected from a crime scene spanning “a couple blocks.”  Capps says that will continue at least through Tuesday evening.

Capps says “long guns and pistols that were used in the assault” were recovered from the home of Thomas Caffall. Capps also said Caffall “fired multiple rounds”, killing three people and injuring four others.

Capps identified the woman hit by gunfire as 51 year old Barbara Holdsworth of Houston. Capps said he was in serious condition at St. Joseph-Bryan.

Capps also said two officers who received medical treatment but not admitted to the hospital were injured by shrapnel from the gunfire. As previously reported, they were identified as Brad Smith and Phil Dorsett. A third officer, Justin Oehlke, remains hospitalized in stable condition following a gunshot wound to his calf.

Capps provided more detail to the sequence of Monday’s events outside the Caffall house at 211 Fidelity. The chief said Precinct One Constable Brian Bachmann was shot as he was approaching the house to serve an eviction notice. Capps says Caffall then shot Holdsworth, who was several hundred yards away, and Chris Northcliff, who was also in the line of fire.

Capps says Caffall fired at law enforcement officers who responded to the scene, then an officer who returned fire struck Caffell.

Bachmann, Northcliff, and Caffall were pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Capps did not disclose if Bachmann was wearing a bulletproof vest because the Precinct 1 Constable was a county employee.

Capps says investigators continue to research Caffall’s background. The chief said College Station Police dealt with Caffall “very little, if at all.”

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Posted by Bill Oliver on Aug 14 2012. Filed under Featured Stories, News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry