UPDATED: 11:05 EST, March 29, 2017
At the request of 11th District Attorney General Neal Pinkston, TBI Special Agents are investigating the circumstances surrounding an officer-involved shooting that occurred in Chattanooga early Wednesday morning.
Preliminary information indicates the incident occurred at approximately 1:30 EST Wednesday morning at a home in the 300 block of Shawnee Trail. A subject — identified as Daniel Hendrix (DOB 3-28-91), an off-duty corrections deputy for the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office — was celebrating his birthday with two female friends, both off-duty Chattanooga Police Department officers. For reasons still under investigation, Hendrix appears to have changed his demeanor, became agitated, armed himself with a personal firearm, and threatened the two women, who later managed to flee the home during the exchange. One of the women was able to call 911 to alert authorities.
Two Chattanooga Police Department officers responded to the scene and located Hendrix, still armed, in the backyard of the home. Witnesses reported the officer gave verbal commands for Hendrix to drop his weapon, but he did not comply. Instead, the situation further escalated and resulted in one of the two responding officers firing his service weapon at least four times, striking Hendrix, who later died at Erlanger.
Agents continue their work to collect any and all relevant evidence, and have located the firearm believed to be the one Hendrix used during the incident. In turn, investigative findings will be submitted to the District Attorney General for his further review and consideration. The TBI only acts as ‘fact-finders’ in this — and every — investigation. The sole decision as to whether the officer’s actions were justified rests solely with the District Attorney General.
Per TBI policy, the agency’s Public Information Office will not release the name of the officer involved, and defer to the local agency to provide that information as it sees fit.
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