Full Notification

April 20, 2018 – The Harris County Sheriff’s Office Administrative Disciplinary Committee has recommended the termination of a deputy for fatally shooting Danny Ray Thomas on March 22.

Sheriff Ed Gonzalez on Friday accepted the committee’s recommendation and terminated the employment of Deputy Cameron Brewer. Brewer had been on administrative duty since the shooting.

The Administrative Disciplinary Committee based its recommendation on the findings of a thorough Internal Affairs investigation, which showed that Brewer did not adhere to the Sheriff’s Office Use of Force Policy.

Brewer was on patrol on the afternoon of March 22 when he saw Thomas involved in an altercation with the driver of a vehicle at the intersection of Greens Road and Imperial Valley. Evidence showed that Thomas was behaving erratically and walking in the intersection with his pants around his ankles.

When Thomas ignored Brewer’s commands to stop and continued walking toward him, Brewer fired a single gunshot that fatally wounded Thomas, who was unarmed.

Brewer was carrying a Taser at the time.

“The brave men and women of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office are called upon to make life-or-death decisions on a daily basis, and we take that responsibility very seriously,” said Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. “We hold the community’s trust as sacred, and we will continue to support our deputies with clear policies and the valuable training they need to protect the lives of all our residents.”

Because this incident is the subject of an ongoing, independent Houston Police Department investigation and a civil lawsuit, the Sheriff’s Office is unable to comment further at this time.