Texas Man Kills His Elderly Mom, Her Dog Before He Surrenders

A Texas man has killed his mother and her dog after he reportedly told his sister what he was going to do.

Police were in a standoff with Gerald Wayne Powell, 45, for seven hours before he surrendered peacefully, according to a Crime Online report. Van Zandt County deputies headed to the scene outside Wills Point, east of Dallas, and arrived at about 10 p.m. on Sunday.

Police had spoken with a family member and learned that Gerald Wayne Powell was inside with several firearms. The suspect allegedly told his sister that he had already killed the dog and his mother was next.

"He also stated he would shoot any law enforcement personnel who attempted to enter onto the property," the sheriff's office said in a report.

The sheriff's office called Powell by telephone. The Texas man answered and again said that he would kill officers who would try to arrest him.

Police said Gerald Wayne Powell surrendered after a SWAT team entered the property on early Monday, KLTV reported. The deputies then found his mother, identified as Billie Powell, dead inside their home, along with the dog.

Van Zandt County Sheriff Steve Hendrix commented on the incident and said that it was a sad and senseless death.

Texas Man Is Suffering From PTSD

One commenter on social media claimed to have known the suspect since school, saying that Gerald Wayne Powell was a classmate from K-12.

The commenter noted that Powell served 20 years in the U.S. military forces with several deployments.

"He's suffered from PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) since 2013 and was honorably discharged in 2015," the commenter added as reported by Scallywag & Vagabond.

An autopsy will be performed on Powell's mother to identify the cause of death. Gerald Wayne Powell was booked into the Van Zandt County jail for murder charges and is currently waiting for arraignment.

Texas Crime

Texas crime rates are higher than national averages. However, the state prides itself on the lowest crime rates in the West South-Central region.

Sixty percent of Texans think crime is increasing in the state compared to 11 percent who believe it is decreasing. On a nationwide scale, 66 percent think the crime in the area is increasing, while eight percent said it is declining.

According to a Safe Wise report, Texas's most experienced crime was package theft, with 21 percent falling victim in the past 12 months.

Meanwhile, Texans expressed the second-highest overall concern about gun violence, with 61 percent saying they worry about gun violence every day.

Fifty-three percent are most worried about a gun violence incident happening to them. In 2020, Texas encountered 34 mass shooting occurrences, as compared to 30 in 2019.

Forty-eight of the survey participants say they use some form of personal protection, which is higher than the national average of 34 percent.

Despite the number, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has dismissed President Joe Biden's gun control measures, saying it was just for show.

Abbott said there is no acceptable way that a president by executive order can alter the Second Amendment rights, Independent reported.

Abbott noted that Texans need their Second Amendment rights to defend themselves, especially when the government is doing less to protect the public.

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