According to the story, several Midland County Sheriff's Office deputies went to Dan Higgins house to question and/or arrest him on October 9, 2014. And during the course of events, Mr. Higgins shot one of the deputies who died shortly thereafter. There was about a three and a half hour standoff before Higgins surrendered peacefully.
Then there was the published mugshot following his arrest. If he surrendered peacefully, how did he get those abrasion on his face?
Today's morning paper provides an answer. The Midland Reporter-Telegram eventually obtained results from an open records request and reported about the contents at Report: Gun that killed Naylor was reported stolen.
Here's an excerpt in which Higgins addressed the treatment he received from the arresting deputies:
"I understand that y'all beating the (expletive) out of me. I did it. I did it," he said. "I didn't fight back, but I get it; I understand that. But if that is the way it's going to be for the rest of the time, can we do it right here, can y'all shoot me up?"
At that point he was probably regretting having passed up the suicide-by-cop option.
Most citizens would want to see standoffs end peacefully rather than in shootouts. And it would seem that most law enforcement officers should want that too. But to telegraph to potential standoff subjects, as they did here, that if the person surrenders they will beat the expletive out of that person, then that doesn't seem like a message that will get positive results.
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