Although officials arrested a man holed up in a house about six hours after the Wednesday shooting, Trooper D.L. Wilson, Texas Department of Safety spokesman, said that man was not found to be connected to this case.
Meteorologist Patrick Crawford, 35, was in his Ford Mustang at about 9:15 a.m. CT Wednesday when a 30- to 35-year-old white or Hispanic man approached, argued with Crawford, pulled out a semi-automatic handgun and fired several times in the parking lot of KCEN-TV studios, Wilson said.
Crawford was shot in the stomach and shoulder and a bullet grazed his head, but he managed to drive off along the Interstate 35 frontage road where the station, which is owned by Gannett Co. Inc. (GCI), is located. Construction workers along I-35 where he stopped his car called for help.
Crawford's ability to leave the scene, about 75 miles north of Austin, likely saved his life, investigators said.The weatherman, who has worked for KCEN-TV's morning show for two years, is in fair and stable condition at a Temple, Texas, hospital. But Wilson said police have not been able to speak to him at length, and he did not reveal a motive nor say whether Patrick was personally targeted.
A Falls County sheriff's deputy was stationed at the entrance to KCEN-TV's parking lot Thursday, checking identification of all who approached the area."You know that it can happen. You hear of it happening. But you never think in a little place like this that anything like this can ever happen," said Charlotte Kinsey, an executive assistant at the station. "And it did."
She heard the pops of the gun going off but didn't think it was a handgun firing. Staff was confined to the building for several hours Wednesday as law enforcement investigated the crime scene and police searched for the suspect.
"Thank you for your continuous thoughts and prayers," Crawford's wife of one year, Heather Brinkmann, wrote on her Facebook page. "Doctors continue to tell me how well he's doing considering the multiple gunshot wounds. ... He is truly my hero."
Crawford was born in Ohio and grew up in Plano, Texas. He graduated in 2004 from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Ill., according to a university spokesman.
He started at WREX-TV, Rockford, Ill.; and moved on to KSWT-TV, Yuma, Ariz.; KHBS-TV, Fort Smith, Ark.; and WDSU-TV, New Orleans, according to his resume on his website.
The suspect, who is considered armed and dangerous, has a receding hairline and was wearing a black, hooded sweatshirt and dark jeans, Wilson said. Investigators have recovered several .40-caliber rounds from Crawford's car.
