How did Chad Walker die? Texas trooper succumbs 5 days after being shot multiple times in roadside ambush
Trooper Chad Walker, who was shot by a gunman who opened fire on him from a deserted vehicle last week, died on Wednesday, March 31, according to Texas Department of Public Safety. "It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that DPS announces the passing of Trooper Chad Walker. Trooper Walker is a hero who bravely served his community. He died following injuries sustained while on patrol," a post at 6.45 pm on the Texas DPS Facebook page said.
"A beloved father and husband, Trooper Walker was one of DPS’ finest. His dedication to duty and his selfless sacrifice, in both life and his death, will never be forgotten."
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How did Chad Walker die?
The Trooper was shot in the head and abdomen at 7.45 pm on Friday while stopping to assist a motorist in an apparently disabled vehicle near Mexia, Texas, the Texas DPS Officers Association said in a release on Saturday. Before Walker could come to a stop behind the vehicle on the shoulder of the FM 2448 and Highway 84, the suspect, later identified as 36-year-old DeArthur Pinson Jr, appeared from the vehicle with a handgun and shot Walker multiple times, the association said.
Pinson Jr fled the scene and triggered a Blue Alert across the state, reported KAGS TV. On Saturday, he was found barricaded inside a home off Highway 84 near Mexia where he shot himself dead, the association reported. He previously served two sentences, one for an aggravated robbery charge and another for a criminal trespass charge, criminal records indicate. Walker was flown to Baylor Scott & White Hillcrest hospital in Waco and put on life support, according to a statement on the DPS Facebook.
"After extensive life-saving efforts conducted by the Baylor Scott and White medical professionals, it has been determined that Trooper Chad Walker no longer displays signs of viable brain activity and he remains on life-support until he can share the gift of life as an organ donor," the statement read.
Walker, who is from Groesbeck, previously worked for the Athens Police Department and Henderson County Sheriff’s Office. “We were lucky enough to hire him at HCSO as a deputy and he went on to become an investigator,” Sheriff Botie Hillhouse told Athens Review. “He is one of the top Texas peace officers I know; never meets a stranger. He has always been there to help whoever he could. He is great person and we are heartbroken about what has happened.”
Walker is survived by his wife and four children – a 15-year-old son, twin 7-year-old daughters and a 2-month-old daughter, for whom a GoFundMe page was set up to help with medical, travel and funeral expenses.
“Our DPS family is absolutely heartbroken at the loss of one of our brothers in uniform who was killed in the line of duty,” DPS Director Steven McCraw said to KAGS TV. “Texas Highway Patrol Trooper Chad Walker was committed to protecting the people of Texas. His sacrifice will never be forgotten, and we ask that you keep his family, friends and colleagues in your prayers during the difficult days ahead.”