Dallas school officer shot by illegal immigrant after alleged struggle, federal indictment filed

According to a federal complaint, Jose Santiago Pantoja-Morales, a 27-year-old Mexican national, leapt from a coworker’s car onto the median of the Lyndon B. Johnson Freeway in Dallas and signaled the nearby Dallas Independent School District police officer for assistance. The officer stopped, offered a ride to a safe spot, and during the drive Pantoja-Morales allegedly rummaged through the officer’s bag. When the officer attempted to remove him, a physical altercation ensued, during which Pantoja-Morales seized the officer’s firearm and discharged it, striking the officer’s right femoral artery.

The officer managed to regain control of his gun, received first-aid from another DISD officer, and was later transported to Parkland Hospital. A federal grand jury returned an indictment on September 16 charging Pantoja-Morales with possession of a firearm by an illegal alien, a crime punishable by up to 15 years in prison. U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould emphasized the case as an attack on the rule of law, while Assistant U.S. Attorney Nadin-Sarah Salkic is handling the prosecution. The ATF Dallas Field Office and Dallas Police Department assisted in the investigation.