HOUSTON – Dec. 7, 2019, will be remembered as a mournful day for the Houston Police Department and the Houston community after a 9-year veteran of the department was killed in the line of duty in east Houston.
Sgt. Christopher Brewster, 32, put on his uniform Saturday as he’s done every day for his shift. He was just promoted nine months ago to sergeant.
“Every single day our officers show up go to work not knowing what they will face. Sgt. Christopher Brewster did that. Came to work, did his job, there was a domestic that he responded to, doing his job, he was fatally injured,” Mayor Sylvester Turner said.
Brewster was shot and killed Saturday afternoon after responding to a domestic violence incident, HPD Chief Art Acevedo said. He was helping his fellow officers when he spotted the victim and alleged suspect, 25-year-old Arturo Solis, Acevedo said.
BACKGROUND: Suspect charged with capital murder in fatal shooting of HPD sergeant, police say
The sergeant’s last moments
When Brewster approached the couple, he was shot several times by Solis, Acevedo said. Even during those critical moments, Brewster drew his pistol to protect himself from the suspect and had the courage to page for other units, Acevedo said.
Although he was “mortally wounded,” he put out the suspect’s description, including clothing, to help officers quickly find the gunman, Acevedo said.
Brewster remembered as incredible crime fighter
“Before he became a sergeant he was in an elite union in the Houston Police Department,” said Joe Gamaldi, president of the Houston Police Officers’ Union. “When we talk about Chris, he’s going to be remembered a great man and a great husband but I want everyone to know that he was a true crime fighter in the truest definition of the word, of those words.”
Acevedo shed tears during Saturday night’s press conference when he talked about Brewster’s growth in the department. Acevedo said Brewster attended cadet class 209 and graduated from the academy Nov. 1, 2010. He said Brewster was promoted to sergeant in 2019.
“It’s a year later and he’s already gone,” Acevedo said while fighting through tears. “I remember promoting him with his family watched him get his badge the pride and the conversation we had Feb. 9, 2019.”
Brewster leaves behind a wife, his two parents and his sister. Acevedo said the department is fully supporting Brewster’s family during this tragic time.