BASTROP COUNTY, Texas -- Texas Rangers took over the investigation in an officer-involved shooting Wednesday that resulted in an elderly man being taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the head.
Two Bastrop County deputies were put on administrative leave until the investigation is completed.
Yellow markers on the road showed how many shell casings were left behind after deputies opened fire on a man just after 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Neighbors who live along Stony Mont Drive said they were concerned.
"Right now, we're just not happy with what happened," a neighbor said.
The Bastrop County Sheriff's Office said deputies responded to a 911 call from a woman who said her elderly father was threatening her with a firearm.
Thursday, that man was identified as 78-year-old Jose Manuel Cantu.
"When he did approach the subject with the gun, there were some verbal commands (to drop his weapon) issued by the officer. The officer fearing for his safety did fire on the subject," Bastrop County Sheriff Terry Pickering said.
"I want them to go back years, months. I want them to go back and investigate this guy (a deputy). Every single time there's something going on, he's the first one on the scene," said neighbor Joe Haros.
Haros says he witnessed the shooting and believes the officer went too far.
"He's gonna come out here and put over nine shots in a 70-year-old man in a wheelchair? Sounds like a personal vendetta. He had hatred for this community and took it out on him," Haros said.
Sheriff Pickering would not confirm whether Cantu was in a wheelchair or whether he was holding a BB gun.
"As far as if he's in a wheelchair, I dunno," Pickering said.
Thursday afternoon Cantu was still hospitalized and in critical condition.
Neighbors say they've been working to build trust with the sheriff's office and create a better relationship.
"We just started a neighborhood crime watch to build a bridge with the Bastrop County Sheriff's Office," Haros said. "I've put in formal complaints about this guy and nothing has been done."
Thursday the Bastrop County Sheriff's Office released the names of the deputies involved -- deputy Mark Garcia, 30, and investigator Stephen Broderick, 32.
Garcia has been with the sheriff's office since Dec. 2005 and Broderick has been employed with the office since March 2008.
Both officers are on leave with pay, which is standard, pending the outcome of the investigation.
