BEXAR COUNTY, Texas – One day before shooting a man who was allegedly armed with two knives, Bexar County sheriff’s deputies had conducted a welfare check on him at his home.
Danh Dinh, 38, sustained at least two gunshot wounds in the shooting last Tuesday.
An arrest affidavit says Dinh showed up at a neighbor’s home, bleeding from his arm and carrying two knives, and was trying to break in through a back door.
That neighbor then called 911, bringing deputies to the area.
“It startled us and then we, I went to go check the back door and I see this man with a weapon in his hand. He had a knife,” the neighbor told KSAT 12 News.
“I noticed just blood all over my patio, all over my kid’s toy and a sandpit,” he said.
The neighbor said he did his best to secure his home and keep Dinh out, leaning against his door until deputies arrived.
When they showed up about three minutes later, the neighbor said Dinh had already moved on to a different home.
Deputies said they ordered Dinh to drop the weapons, described as two mini samurai sword-type knives, but he refused. They said when he made a move toward them, they fired.
The affidavit says Dinh suffered gunshot wounds to his belly and backside. As of Monday morning, he remained in a hospital.
The neighbor said the ordeal has left his family traumatized.
“When we hear any loud bang, when my 3-year-old hears any little noise, he (says), ‘What’s that noise?’ and he panics,” the neighbor said.
It’s trauma, he said, that could have been avoided.
Just one day prior to the shooting, Bexar County deputies were called to Dinh’s home for a welfare check.
A statement from the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said deputies determined at that time that Dinh did not need to be emergency detained.
“In my opinion, a cry for help is a cry for help,” the neighbor said. “He would’ve never showed up at my backdoor. He would’ve never showed up across the street. That whole incident, I think, could’ve been avoided.”
Now, the neighbor said he and his family are struggling to forget it ever happened.
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