James Darrell Gilbreath was recently released from a Metroplex hospital, then transported by law enforcement and booked into the Brown County Jail on charges of attempted capital murder of a Brown County deputy. Gilbreath’s bail has been set at $1 million.
Gilbreath was charged with the crime on Thursday, Feb. 29 and booked into the Brown County Jail at 11:53 p.m. Thursday, March 7, according to the county’s official website.
On Thursday, Feb. 29 at approximately 6:01 p.m., the Brown County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched to a residence on CR 477 in the northern portion of Brown County for a domestic disturbance not in progress.
One deputy arrived on scene and began checking on the female victim, who was separated from the male suspect due to the suspect going to a guest house on the property. The suspect exited the guest house and began manipulating the slide of a semi auto pistol while pointing it at the deputy. The suspect ignored demands to put the firearm down and talk to the deputy. The deputy sent the victim to her house for safety. The suspect then fled back into the guest house. The deputy retreated to his patrol unit for cover and retrieved his rifle. The suspect exited the residence displaying a rifle, again ignoring demands to put the gun down and come talk to the deputy. The suspect then shouldered the rifle and aimed it at the deputy and attempted to discharge the firearm, but it failed. The deputy took cover fired one round his patrol rifle debilitating the suspect, who went to the ground.
Life saving measures ensued and the suspect was transported to Hendrick Medical Center in Brownwood. The suspect was then transported to a Higher Level of Care Facility.
“Based on what evidence I have observed, I’m proud of the deputy for doing what he was trained to do,” Brown County Sheriff Vance Hill said Monday morning. “He was well within his duties to discharge his firearm at that suspect.”
The deputy’s name has not been released.
The case is expected to eventually be presented to a Brown County Grand Jury by the District Attorney’s Office and the Texas Rangers office, Hill added.