Dallas police officer killed in shooting: Here’s what we know

A shooting in southeast Oak Cliff left at least one Dallas police officer dead and two others injured Thursday night, multiple police officials told The Dallas Morning News.
Dallas police confirmed officers were investigating the shooting early Friday, according to a post on X.
Here’s what we know.
Read the crime and public safety news your neighbors are talking about.
Or with:
By signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
The crossfire occurred at a community center called For Oak Cliff.
Dozens of police units responded about 10:10 p.m. to an assist officer call in the 900 block of East Ledbetter Drive, near South Marsalis Avenue, according to an online police call log.
Responding officers found an officer shot in his marked patrol vehicle, Dallas police spokeswoman Kristin Lowman said. Officers then exchanged gunfire with a suspect, and two other officers were shot, Lowman said.
In an interview with The News, Dallas Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Adam Bazaldua said he was told surveillance video showed Officer Burks was killed while in his patrol car and had no interaction with the shooter beforehand. He said it appeared to be a “completely senseless act.”
“You hear often of officers’ families who say goodbye before they head to their shift not knowing if it’ll be for the last time and here’s an example of exactly that,” Bazaldua said. “He was just doing his job protecting our city.”
The officers were taken to hospitals. One died, one is in critical condition and the other is listed as stable, Lowman said.
The suspect, whom police have not publicly identified, drove away toward Lewisville and was pursued by Dallas police officers in the northbound lane of Interstate 35E. Shots were fired and the suspect was killed just north of State Highway 121 Business, according to a post by the Lewisville police.
No Lewisville police officers were involved, according to the post.
Lowman said the suspect exited a vehicle with a long gun after the pursuit. Dallas officers fired, killing the suspect and shutting the highway down.
Police officials searched an empty white Buick that appeared to have shattered back windows and a flat back tire. Dozens of police vehicles lined the closed-off highway. A body lay under a sheet in the street.
All lanes of northbound Interstate 35E were cleared as of 9:30 Friday morning.
At about 1:15 a.m., dozens of Dallas police officers stood quietly outside the emergency room entrance to Methodist Hospital. They stood in two parallel lines, with the honor guard closest to the entrance, and waited. Police squad cars lined the blocks leading up to the hospital, their emergency lights flashing.
In a post on X early Friday, Dallas police Chief Eddie García said “No words.” He attached a photo of a Dallas police badge above the city of Dallas with a dark blue line across the center.
“Our department is hurting,” Lowman said. “We ask tonight and this morning for the thoughts and prayers of our city, for not only those who are recovering in the hospital, but for our fallen, for their family and for their loved ones, and for us as a department as well.”
Lowman said the chief is expected to release more information in the coming days.
Flags at all city facilities will be flown at half-staff, according to a statement from Dallas police.
Darron Burks, 46, was fatally wounded in the gunfire, his mother, Cherie Jeffrey, told The News when reached by phone Friday morning. Jeffrey said she was notified by officers at her home. Burks was a former school teacher who’d just completed police training.
A candlelight vigil is planned to honor Burks at For Oak Cliff at 6:30 p.m. Friday, according to a Facebook post, and will continue at Winners Smokehouse in Cedar Hill.
Burks attended Paul Quinn College and pledged Omega Psi Phi. He worked at Texans Can Academies before joining the force, according to Apryl Washington Goree, a former coworker at the charter school.
“He loved helping kids, but he wanted to help the community versus just the classroom,” Washington Goree said. “He wanted to help on a broader spectrum.”
Dallas police have not publicly identified the other two police officers or suspect.
Officer Rogelio Santander Jr., who died after he was shot responding to a shoplifting call at a Lake Highlands hardware store in April 2018, was the last officer killed by gunfire before this week. The gunman later pleaded guilty to capital murder and was sentenced to life without parole
Ninety-three Dallas police officers have died in the line of duty since 1892, according to police website.
A patrol car was parked in front of the department’s south central station Friday morning. On its hood lay one bouquet of white roses and another of white lilies.
“Dallas has lost a hero,” Mayor Eric Johnson wrote in a statement Friday. “This attack on three of our protectors is nothing short of an attack on our city, our families, and our way of life. We must continue their work to stop violence in our communities. We must never forget their sacrifice.”
Mayor Johnson is currently isolating with COVID-19 and is unable to conduct interviews, according to his statement.
“I want to express my deepest condolences and full support to the family of our fallen Dallas Police Officer,” Dallas Interim City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert wrote in a statement Friday. “We cannot take for granted how precious life is and how courageous our first responders are to selflessly take the oath to protect and to serve.”
From the parking lot of For Oak Cliff Friday morning, Dallas City Council member Carolyn King Arnold told The News she was “devastated” by the news of the shooting.
“Really no words can describe an officer being murdered like this,” she said. “It just leaves you speechless.”
Arnold said she was relieved to hear the For Oak Cliff center was able to share surveillance video with Dallas police to assist in their investigation.
The center was quiet and its parking lot vacant as of 9 a.m. Friday, roughly an hour after three police vehicles — one marred by at least two bullet holes — were towed down East Ledbetter Drive. Another bullet punctured the community center near the front entrance, just below a sign listing its business and recreation hours.