Man allegedly shot at game warden but missed
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Johnnie Heintzman was charged Wednesday with criminal mischief-causing damage valued at less than $2,500 to a livestock or game animal fence. He was riding in a vehicle whose driver allegedly drove away from game wardens and then fled on foot. The driver, 40-year-old Lampasas resident Robert W. Morris II, remained at large at press time Thursday. -
DAVID LOWE | DISPATCH RECORD
Officers from multiple law-enforcement agencies formulate search plans outside a house at 2507 Big Divide Rd., where a man who allegedly led officers on a high-speed vehicular chase Wednesday ran out of gasoline and fled the vehicle on foot. At left, wearing sunglasses, is Capt. Game Warden Cody Hatfield of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department Law Enforcement Division, Region VII, District II. In the center, wearing a cowboy hat, is TPWD Game Warden Shaun Bayless of Lampasas County. At the far right is Lampasas County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Johnny Arellano.
One man was arrested, and one remained at large at press time Thursday morning, after a highspeed chase Wednesday that resulted in a “lockout” at Taylor Creek Elementary School and a severalhour manhunt.
Sheriff Jess Ramos – whose office was one of several agencies that worked on the manhunt – provided the following details about the pursuit and resulting search.
At 12:49 p.m., a caller alleged trespassers had cut a livestock fence in the 4000 block of County Road 3270, northwest of Kempner.
When game wardens found the suspected trespassers and approached the vehicle in which they were sitting, 40-year-old Lampasas resident Robert W. Morris II drove away. His passenger was 30-year-old Johnnie Heintzman of Copperas Cove.
The approximately 20-minute chase reached high speeds, Ramos said, until Morris drove across a yard at 2507 Big Divide Rd. and ran out of gasoline.
Morris fled on foot and shot once with a handgun at a game warden who was chasing him, Ramos said. The shot missed.
Morris jumped over a fence to get into the backyard at the house and then jumped over a fence into a pasture. That property is about 350 acres, with hilly terrain and thick cedar, Ramos said.
Multiple agencies searched for Morris for hours until the manhunt was called off Wednesday night.
The Texas Department of Public Safety provided a fixed-wing aircraft with a system that detects body heat. Game wardens, the sheriff’s office and the Copperas Cove Police Department operated drones in the search for Morris.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice’s Hughes Unit in Gatesville searched for Morris with two packs of scent-tracking dogs. The dogs worked about three hours and ran several miles, Ramos said.
Some searching – including efforts by Investigator Matt Barnes of the sheriff’s office – took place on horseback, Ramos said. The sheriff said riding a horse allows officers to keep pace with dogs when they “go at full speed,” and he said the additional height also gives an officer a helpful perspective when scanning the terrain.
At about 9 p.m. Wednesday, Ramos said the manhunt had been called off for the night, and he doubted Morris still was in the area. Nevertheless, game wardens, the sheriff’s office and Copperas Cove police continued with “roving patrols” Wednesday night, and agencies remained “on high alert,” Ramos said. He said he believes Morris still is armed.
The sheriff said his main concern during the afternoon manhunt was ensuring Morris did not get onto Taylor Creek Elementary School property. Authorities “flooded the area” with law-enforcement officers, and Ramos said officers were inside the school and on the exterior grounds to ensure safety.
The sheriff said Morris is a heavy-set white man with a “scruffy beard.” He was wearing khaki pants, a blue shirt and a ball cap. Ramos said if Morris still is in the area and someone sees a suspicious person who matches his description, that person should not approach him but should contact law enforcement.
Authorities are “working on leads” for Morris’ arrest, Ramos said.
On Wednesday, Game Warden Shaun Bayless arrested Heintzman, who Ramos said did not flee the vehicle. The Copperas Cove man faces a state-jail-felony charge of criminal mischief for the alleged cutting of a livestock fence.
Taylor Creek Elementary School issued a notification Wednesday afternoon that the campus was under a "lockout" procedure due to a pursuit on Big Divide Road. The campus Facebook page also said, "Police officers are present on campus, everyone is safe."
As of 4 p.m, Lampasas ISD Superintendent Dr. Chane Rascoe said "all the students and staff were released. It went smoothly."
Rascoe said the incident occurred about a mile north of the school, and there was not an immediate threat, but LISD took necessary precautions.