Sheriff’s deputies in Houston, Texas, shot a woman multiple times after mistaking her for an intruder at her friend’s apartment, according to body camera footage released over the weekend.
The woman, Eboni Pouncy, was shot five times during the Feb. 3 confrontation and her attorney, Ben Crump, has since requested the release of body camera footage from both officers.
Authorities say Pouncy was holding a gun when they opened fire.
Following the release of footage from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office on Saturday, Crump said the video was “evidence of the unnecessary and excessive force used against his client.”
That night, police went to an east Houston apartment complex, where a tenant called 911 to report someone was inside his apartment, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.
HARRIS COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE
“Around 2:14 a.m., the first police officer arrived on the scene and evacuated the apartment,” the press release said. No intruder was located.”
A second officer arrived to offer assistance, but before they left the scene, a neighbor “reported to the officers that someone had broken into another apartment.”
In the second apartment, officers noticed that a screen from the front window had been removed, the glass was broken and the blinds were raised, the sheriff’s office said.
The images show an agent knocking on the door of the accommodation. The two speakers moved away towards the windows.
“She saw a woman approach the door with a gun,” the statement read.
After the officers made “life-saving efforts” of the woman they struck, she was transported to a local hospital; she was in stable condition.
“Police officers conducted a security search and did not locate anyone else inside the apartment,” according to the release. A handgun was found inside the residence, which authorities believe is the one the officer saw before she began shooting.
HARRIS COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE
Investigators later discovered that Pouncy was “the guest of the apartment resident and that they had broken the window to gain entry because they did not have a key with them.”
Earlier, the Sheriff’s Department said Pouncy lived at the apartment.
The two officers were placed on administrative leave and the sheriff’s department said it was conducting an internal investigation.
The Harris County Prosecutor’s Office is independently investigating the incident, which is common when a deputy uses potentially deadly force, according to the department.
Crump said the shooting “should never have happened.”
“We demand that the officers involved be immediately held accountable for the terrible injuries Eboni suffered due to their impulsive actions,” he said in a statement.
The Sheriff’s Department asked anyone with relevant information about the shooting to contact their office.
“The investigation into this incident is ongoing and is being conducted by the Sheriff’s Office Homicide Unit. All evidence collected during the investigation will be forwarded to the prosecutor’s office for presentation to an independent grand jury.”
