Emotional testimony opens trial of man accused of shooting Brazos Co. officers

BRAZOS COUNTY, Texas (KBTX) – The trial for the state of Texas against Joshua Herrin officially began Tuesday morning. Herrin is accused of injuring two officers, stealing two vehicles and leading Brazos County authorities on a manhunt that lasted more than 12 hours in December 2022.

Jury selection in the trial of a man accused of shooting two Brazos Co. officers in 2022

A Bryan officer and a Brazos County deputy were shot during the half-day event. Ultimately, Herrin was arrested in the Benchley area after another shootout with police in which he suffered a gunshot wound to the head.

Opening speech

Herrin was present in the 361st District Court as his trial began with opening statements Tuesday morning. The state, which is charging Herrin, initially painted for jurors a picture of what happened on Dec. 29, 2022, when a Bryan police officer attempted to conduct a traffic stop.

Herrin's defense team declined to make an opening statement.

Take the witness stand

On the first official day of the trial, attorneys recounted how Herrin eluded police before reportedly shooting the Bryan officer twice during a chase. They also highlighted the other roles that day, many of whom appeared to take the witness stand.

Officer Najee Watson of Bryan PD was injured on December 29, 2022 when he was shot twice; once in the arm and once in the thigh. According to Watson, the jury learned how one of those bullets missed a vital artery by a millimeter.

The state began the witness phase with a Brazos County 911 operator who was also Watson's fiancé and now his wife at the time of the shooting.

She explained that she was assigned to Bryan Fire and EMS that evening. But I could hear other scanners nearby, including the Bryan Police Department (BPD) channel. She was able to identify her fiancé's voice over the scanner as he told them shots had been fired and Watson had applied a tourniquet. The dispatcher, who described being filled with fear and anxiety, was now tasked with sending an ambulance to her fiancé, who was possibly bleeding to death. When EMS arrived on scene, dispatchers said she got up to compose herself and collapsed.

The defense had no questions for this witness.

Next, neighbors responded to Watson's helpers after seeing a man with a gun outside their home. The husband and wife described being at home with their eight children at the time.

The husband, a chiropractor, testified that he applied tourniquets to Watson's leg to control the bleeding until a replacement arrived. The defense asked the woman if she saw who the man with the gun was. She answered no, but could tell it was a man with lighter skin.

Next, the first Bryan police officer on the scene that night approached the witness stand and was then brought to the witness stand. He is currently accused of working on “vice-led” crimes. This term refers to crimes related to drugs, prostitution, gambling, alcohol and more. At that point, the jury was shown body-worn camera video of that officer that night. The officer appeared somewhat embarrassed as he spoke of finding his colleague, whom he described as a good friend, in this condition.

The defense, in turn, asked the officer whether, to their knowledge, a person who uses methamphetamine could behave differently, often frantically and erratically. The officer agreed that this was correct.

Two men took the stand next: one claimed to be a former employer of Herrin, the other a friend. They testified that the vehicle and weapons in Herrin's possession that day belonged to them. The guns were taken without the owner's permission, but the truck was driven by Herrin with his permission when Watson tried to stop traffic, the men said.

The state later called another dispatcher, who was a director. She described the confusion in the dispatch center that evening over the difficulty of finding Watson after he was injured. They used the coordinates of Watson's vehicle to locate him, but then discovered that what he was telling them through the scanner did not match the movement of his patrol unit. That's when she and Watson realized the device was stolen.

The defense referred questions.

Officer Watson takes the stand

After a lunch break, Watson himself took the witness stand.

Watson was a BPD officer at the time, has continued his work in law enforcement for nine years and currently lives in Maryland. At one point, the officer showed jurors his gunshot wound and described the moment he realized he had been shot and turned away from trying to arrest the suspect to ensure he stayed alive.

A crowd of Bryan police officers, county employees and others gathered for the testimony. The gallery and jury were shown video from Watson's body-worn camera. This became an emotional moment for the uniformed officers in the room as they watched Watson, with a panicked voice and slow breathing, attempt to apply his own tourniquet and wait on the grass for help.

This happened in a mostly quiet area, but sirens could be heard in the background getting closer. Reviewing the footage, police lights could be seen through the trees as emergency crews struggled to locate Watson.

Testimony of the watch officer

Another witness called to the stand was another BPD officer assigned to guard Herrin while he spent time at the hospital in Temple. These were head injuries that Herrin suffered when Herrin was shot by police during their search.

The officer was assigned to night watch duty from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. together with another officer. He testified that at some point during his watch, Herrin spoke about what had happened, at which point they read him his Miranda rights and warned him not to say anything more.

Herrin allegedly continued talking and asked the officer why Watson tried to stop him. The officer described leaving the room and calling Watson on his cell phone. Watson confirmed to this officer that the traffic stop was triggered by a failed brake light.

The officer said he asked Watson if he had any questions for Herrin and he said, “Why did he shoot me?” The officer forwarded Watson's answer and question to Herrin, who told the officer it was because that his driving license had been revoked.

The defense team took over the questioning and asked this officer whether Herrin had started talking of her own free will. The officer responded “yes,” adding that Herrin indicated he planned to shoot Watson in the chest in hopes of hitting a bulletproof vest. Herrin told the officer he wasn't trying to kill Watson and asked how Watson was doing.

During the screening of the dashboard camera video from Watson's patrol unit, a person returns to the car after the shooting and drives away. The driver can then be heard saying: “I just killed someone.” [expletive] Policeman. Oh damn, I just killed one [expletive] Policeman. Oh God.”

Herrin pleaded not guilty earlier Tuesday morning. This trial is expected to continue throughout the week and possibly into next week. Mistress faces up to 99 years in prison.

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