COLLEGE STATION, Texas – A gunman who fired numerous shots at officers and pedestrians near the Texas A&M University campus, killing two and wounding several others before he was killed, was armed with several weapons, College Station police said Tuesday.
The deadly shootout erupted Monday in the 200 block of Fidelity shortly after noon, about two blocks from the campus.
According to College Station police, Brazos County Precinct 1 Constable Brian Bachmann, 41, went to the home of Thomas Alton Caffall, 35, to serve forcible entry detainer, the last step in an eviction proceeding, and was shot. Police said they then received 911 calls about a shooting. Bachmann did not radio in for help, officials said.
Investigators said Caffall opened fire on Bachmann.
"From our investigation, Bachmann arrived on the scene shortly after noon. Either upon his approach to the house or shortly thereafter, it appears he was shot by the suspect in the front yard of that residence. Caffall then started to shoot at other victims in the area and College Station police officers as they approached the scene," College Station Police Chief Jeff Capps said.
Officers responding to the reports of an officer down saw Bachmann wounded on the ground in the front yard, then got into what police described as an extended shootout with Caffall.
"Upon their initial arrival, they started taking gunfire. They returned gunfire and that went on for several minutes, back and forth, and then officers were able to shoot the suspect," Capps said. "During the incident, Caffall fired multiple rounds. Investigators have recovered some long guns and pistols from his residence that were used in the assault."
Bachmann and Caffall were pronounced dead at a hospital.
Chris Northcliff, 51, a civilian from College Station, was the third person killed in the shootings at the off-campus home near the university's football stadium.
Three other law enforcement officers and Barbara Holdsworth, 51, of Houston, were wounded, College Station Assistant Police Chief Scott McCollum said.
Officer Justin Oehlke was wounded in the calf, police said. Two other officers -- Brad Smith and Phil Dorsett -- were treated for "shrapnel injuries" and released.
Holdsworth was in serious condition after undergoing surgery. Friends said the mother was helping her daughter move when the shooting started.
Police spokeswoman Rhonda Seaton said Northcliff and Holdsworth were outside when they were shot.
Caffall had no prior police record in College Station, authorities said. Officials did not say if Caffall had permits for his guns.
Investigators said they do not know if Bachmann had any warning that Caffall was armed. Police would not release if Bachmann was wearing a bulletproof vest.
"(Bachmann) was a pillar in this community," College Station Police Department Assistant Chief Scott McCollum said. "It's sad and tragic that we lost him today."
The entire gunfire exchange between Caffall and officers lasted about 30 minutes, detectives said.
"When I heard the first shots going out, I ducked down under my truck, in the floorboards, and I started counting shots," witness Will Hatheway said. "I wanted to make sure how many shots were fired because I know that detail is always required, and I wanted to help out the police."
Hatheway said he heard 30 shots that were fired from what sounded like a semiautomatic weapon.
Caffall's sister said Monday night the family was "shocked" by the violence.
"Our hearts and prayers go out to the families and this is just a senseless tragedy," said Courtney Clark, Caffall's sister, reached Monday evening at her mother's home in Navasota, about 20 miles to the south. "We are just distraught by the havoc that he has caused."
She declined additional comment.
College Station police said they did not have any past trouble with Caffall.
A Code Maroon was issued at Texas A&M after the shooting. Police urged people to stay away from the area as they investigated four scenes hours after the shooting. Most of the university's 50,000 students were not on the campus about 90 miles northwest of Houston because the fall semester doesn't start until Aug. 27, university spokeswoman Sherylon Carroll said.
Twenty-four hours after the shooting, area residents were still not allowed to return home permanently as the area was still a crime scene. They were logged in and out and escorted by police to get necessities from their houses.
Bachmann worked more than 19 years in law enforcement, according to the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education. He started out with the Hempstead Police Department before spending most of his career with the Brazos County Sheriff's Office. He had been a constable since January 2011, after winning election to the post the prior November.
In a February 2010 candidate profile in the Bryan-College Station Eagle, the married father of two said he wanted to bring "constables back to the community" by actively patrolling neighborhoods to discourage crime.
Constables are law enforcement officers similar to sheriff's deputies who are elected to serve in specific county precincts. They primarily serve warrants and official paperwork or act as courtroom bailiffs.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, an A&M alumnus, said at an event in Florida that his "prayers are with any of those that have been injured." A&M President R. Bowen Loftin issued a statement calling Monday a "sad day in the Bryan-College Station community."
Preventing tragedies
The College Station shooting comes less than a month after the shooting in an Aurora, CO, movie theater that left 12 dead and 58 injured.
So what, if anything, can people do to prevent tragedies like these?
"Even if we can predict it might occur, it's very difficult for professionals to predict when it might occur," said San Antonio psychiatrist, Dr. Harry Croft.
Croft says the first step is simply talking to the person you're concerned about. But realize they might not be eager for help.
"Then you try the best you can to contact their physician, a good friend who might be able to talk to them, or the mental health authorities," Croft said.
But what if you feel you're running out of time and a threat is immediate? Your best option then is to call police.
"Let us respond and let us evaluate the situation to see if we need to take that person into custody to get help, or just need to refer them to other resources," said Officer Ernest Stevens with SAPD's Crisis Intervention Team.
SAPD specially trains its officers to handle such a response and will follow up with families to make sure they're getting the help they need.
"To make sure they're receiving the treatment they need, they're on their meds, they're making their appointments to try to avoid that kind of crisis from happening here," Stevens said.
You can also request a mental health warrant, which Stevens says takes about a day to process through the court system. It allows the Bexar County Sheriff's Department to pick up an individual and take them in for an evaluation by a doctor.
But experts say it is important to note that mental illness doesn't always lead to violence.
"People with a mental illness are not more violent than any of the public at large," Stevens added. "That's just a stigma."