Off-duty Central Texas cop who shot woman in road rage incident resigns, surrenders

COPPERAS COVE, Texas (KWTX) - An off-duty Copperas Cove police officer who fired eight shots at a woman Sunday afternoon, striking her repeatedly, as the result of an apparent road rage incident resigned after he was named in a felony warrant Thursday and then turned himself in to the Coryell County Sheriff’s Office.

Officer Eric Anthony Stoneburner, 45, is charged with aggravated assault/serious bodily injury/use of deadly weapon in the shooting Sunday that sent Lacresha Murray to Scott & White Medical Center in Temple with non-life-threatening injuries.

His name did not appear on the Coryell County Jail’s online roster Friday morning.

Texas Rangers are investigating the shooting, about which few details were released Friday, but Copperas Cove police Chief Eddie Wilson said state investigators have “video that is being held as evidence.”

Murray was westbound in a Chevrolet 1500 pickup on Robertson Avenue at around 12:40 p.m. Sunday when she turned across both lanes of the street in the 900 block of Robertson and appeared to try to back her vehicle into a driveway, Wilson said during a news conference Friday morning.

Stoneburner, who was eastbound on Robertson in a 2008 Dodge Dakota pickup with his 4-year-old granddaughter in a child safety seat, yielded to Murray, Wilson said, and then started to move forward once there was room to clear the front of her vehicle.

Then she moved forward again, he stopped, and then eventually continued eastbound on Robertson.

Murray passed him in the 1400 block of Robertson, almost hitting the front left of his vehicle, Wilson said.

Murray and Stoneburner both stopped in the 1500 block of Robertson, just short of the Williams Street intersection, Wilson said.

Murray got out of her vehicle to confront Stoneburner, who got out of his vehicle with his gun drawn and pointed at her, Wilson said.

“The course of events that followed led to Mr. Stoneburner discharging multiple rounds striking Ms. Murray multiple times.”

“As a department, we cannot support Mr. Stoneburner’s decision to use deadly force in the moment and manner he did,” Wilson said.

“We have worked hard to build legitimacy and trust within our community and will work just as hard to rebuild any trust lost as a result of this event,” he said.

Murray told KWTX earlier this week she made the U-turn because she started feeling ill and wanted to drive to a hospital.

Murray said after she and the officer took turns racing past each other, she finally stopped to confront him.

During the argument that ensued, she says she was holding her side, which was in pain, and the man pulled out a gun.

“When I turned around to run back to my truck and get out of there, I just heard pop pop pop pop and all I could do was bend over and duck,” she said.

She says the man didn’t identify himself as an officer until after he started shooting.

Murray was treated and later released and returned to the shooting scene later Sunday afternoon.

She said Friday she has been in contact with the Texas Rangers who are investigating the shooting and said she is satisfied with the progress so far.

“To me I know he was shooting to kill and by the grace of God I’m still here,” Murray said.

“So I just hope he gets some help in his mind and head whatever is going on with him and I’m glad that he is no longer in the police department.”

(Rosemond Crowd, Alex Gibbs and Eric Franklin contributed to this story)

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