KINGWOOD — A prisoner of the San Jacinto County Jail was killed by a SJC deputy sheriff during an altercation at HCA Kingwood Hospital on Feb. 24.
Jarmar Brooks, 34, of Point Blank, died after the altercation with the deputy, who has not been identified.
San Jacinto County Chief Deputy Stanley Jolly said that at about 8:50 p.m., deputies from the San Jacinto County Sheriff's Office, along with officers from the Houston Police Department, responded to an "assist the officer" call at HCA Kingwood Hospital, and learned that an officer-involved shooting had occurred in the intensive care unit.
Deputies made contact with the San Jacinto County deputy who had been assigned to guard Brooks, who had been transported to the hospital for medical treatment following injuries sustained in an altercation the previous night.
According to investigators, during the hospital stay, Brooks allegedly attempted to distract the deputy, leading to a physical struggle in which the inmate attempted to seize the deputy’s firearm. The deputy was forced to use deadly force to prevent the inmate from causing harm.
Despite immediate life-saving efforts by emergency medical personnel, the inmate succumbed to his injuries, Jolly said.
Jolly said that Brooks was arrested after a fight with family members; he reportedly was attacking his wife and received his injuries when other family members attempted to intervene.
This incident is now under a thorough investigation by the Houston Police Department, the Texas Rangers, the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, and the San Jacinto County Sheriff's Office to ensure a complete and transparent review of the circumstances.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by this tragic event,” Jolly said. “We ask for patience and understanding as the investigation unfolds.”
Brooks was arrested Feb. 23 after authorities received calls about a disturbance at Brooks’ home, where his wife told police she was being assaulted.
The affidavit for arrest warrant states that the wife and three children escaped the house into a vehicle, but was chased down by Brooks. The suspect beat on the windows, and the was said to have gotten into a truck and was ramming the vehicle containing his family.
When Brooks was placed into custody, he was put on a gurney and taken to a hospital in Livingston after being injured fighting with his wife and father, the affidavit states. He was then transferred to the hospital in Kingwood because of the extent of his injuries.
He was charged with two counts of aggravated assault on a family member with a weapon, first-degree felonies; three counts of abandonment or endangerment of a child, second-degree felonies; two counts of injury to a child, elderly or disabled person, third-degree felonies; assault on a family member impeding breath or circulation, third-degree felonies; two counts of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, state jail felonies; theft, a state jail felony; criminal mischief, a state jail felony; evading arrest with previous convictions, a state jail felony; and two counts of resisting arrest, search or transport, misdemeanors.
