Pointing weapon at law enforcement sends violent felon to prison

HOUSTON - A 33-year-old Houston resident has been sentenced for being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

Tomas Rodriguez pleaded guilty April 25, 2024.

U.S. District Judge Alfred H. Bennett has now ordered Rodriguez to serve 90 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by a three-year-term of supervised release. At the hearing, the court saw body worn camera video of Rodriguez pointing a firearm at an officer and surveillance video of Rodriguez repeatedly assaulting a female. Judge Bennett also heard testimony from the police officer involved in the incident. In handing down the sentence, the court noted the seriousness of Rodriguez's conduct, particularly his vicious assault of a female victim and assault on a law enforcement officer.

On Sept. 5, 2021, a local police department officer responded to a report of an assault in a parking lot near a Houston bar. Witnesses directed him to Rodriguez who had fled towards an injured female lying face down on the ground. Rodriguez fell as he ran and the officer commanded him to remain on the ground.

However, Rodriguez got up and pointed a loaded .22-caliber pistol at the officer who responded by discharging his duty weapon in self-defense. Not struck, Rodriguez proceeded to flee and discarded the weapon. Authorities apprehended Rodriguez following a foot pursuit and subsequently recovered his firearm.

Rodriguez has multiple prior felony convictions. As such, he is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition per federal law.

Rodriguez has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The Houston Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Byron H. Black prosecuted the case.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice's violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.