MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas — A firefighter returning home from a night of St. Patrick’s Day partying was shot and killed by his next-door neighbor when he tried to enter the wrong house.
CBS News reported that Houston firefighter Sam Keen, 27, was shot Monday night by a 64-year-old woman who thought he was an intruder.
Firefighter Keen took a cab home after a night of drinking to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.
“No one did anything wrong. It was just a confluence of events that provoked a tragedy,” Houston Mayor Annise Parker said. “My understanding is that the firefighter, off-duty, had been out. He did what he was supposed to do: He took a cab ride home, got dropped off in the wrong place and wasn’t aware of it. [He] tried to get into what he thought was his house and was tragically shot.”
Deputies said the woman heard something on her front porch, looked out and saw a young man outside, according to the report. She yelled for the man to leave, warning him that she had a gun. The woman told deputies the man kept trying to get into her home so she fired two shots through the door and then called 911, according to the report.
Firefighter Keen was rushed to a hospital where he later died.
Keen and his wife were newlyweds who moved to the neighborhood about a year ago, according to the report.
“We’re here to support her and do whatever we can to kind of help them through this process,” said Houston Fire Department Chief Terry Garrison. “But it’s a travesty. Whether we lose a firefighter on duty or off duty, we lose a member of our family.”
Keen joined department in 2010 and also served in the Marines, according to the report.
The woman who shot him was not physically hurt but was shaken up.
“If someone is coming through your door and trying to get in, I could see where she was scared,” neighbor Kathy Pimms told CBS.
The incident will be sent to a grand jury to determine whether any charges will be filed, officials said.