Garrett Hull became the 58th Fort Worth police officer to die in the line of duty when he was pronounced dead Friday night at John Peter Smith Hospital.
“There’s not a dry eye in this house,” police chief Joel Fitzgerald said in a press conference at the hospital that began just before midnight. “Our whole department is hurting right now.”
Hull, who has been called a hero and the cement of his unit by police, was apprehending robbery suspects early Friday morning at a bar in south Fort Worth when one suspect, believed to be Dacion Steptoe, shot him in the forehead.
Steptoe was shot and killed by Hull’s fellow officers. Two other suspects, Samuel Mayfield, 23, and Timothy Huff, 33, are in jail and face charges of attempted murder.
Hull is the first Fort Worth officer to die on the job, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page, since Dwayne N. Freeto died after his patrol car was hit by a drunk driver on Dec. 17, 2006.