Motel stand-off suspect Melvin McKinney held without bond

Crime analyst: Calls at motels risky for police

Melvin McKinney

SAN ANTONIO – The suspect in Monday's standoff at a downtown motel and shooting of a police officer was being held Tuesday without bond at the Bexar County Jail for a parole violation from a prior drug conviction.

Melvin Eugene McKinney, 38, was also being held in lieu of $250,000 bond on a charge of aggravated assault in connection with the shooting of SAPD Officer Aaron Terrazas, who was shot in the head. Terrazas was listed Tuesday in stable condition at San Antonio Military Medical Center.

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Jail authorities said McKinney also has a third bond of $7,000 for assault bodily injury of a family member in March.

Crime analyst Eddie Gonzales said the incident that triggered the day-long standoff is an example of why calls to motels can be risky for police.

"I'm not saying all motels are bad, but they do attract a certain criminal element," Gonzales said.

Gonzales said he dreaded responding to those types of calls when he was a police officer.

"You got fugitives. You have people who don't want to be found. You got people who don't know their name. People who don't want to tell you their name," Gonzales said. "They get desperate and they feel trapped and they're going to lash out whoever responds."

Police said Terrazas and another officer arrived at the Motel 8 on North St. Mary's Street after McKinney's wife called saying her husband had a gun and she had been assaulted.

SAPD officials said the first bullet came through the closed door after Terrazas knocked and announced he was a police officer. The two officers then backed off, but Terrazas was shot after the door of Room 126 opened and McKinney fired several more shots, police officials said.

Police officials said McKinney was posting on his Facebook account during the standoff.

To view a list of stories Jessie Degollado has done, click here.

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About the Author:

Jessie Degollado has been with KSAT since 1984. She is a general assignments reporter who covers a wide variety of stories. Raised in Laredo and as an anchor/reporter at KRGV in the Rio Grande Valley, Jessie is especially familiar with border and immigration issues. In 2007, Jessie also was inducted into the San Antonio Women's Hall of Fame.