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SCHERTZ, Texas (AP) — A Texas sheriff says a wanted felon told deputies that she was armed and would shoot them before they killed her in a spray of gunfire that also left a 6-year-old boy dead.
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar told the San Antonio Express-News that Amanda Jones, 30, forced her way into a mobile home where the boy, Kameron Prescott, lived on Dec. 21 and then was confronted outside by four deputies.
A person inside the home in Schertz, northeast of San Antonio, also reported hearing Jones say she would shoot the deputies, Salazar said.
"Someone from inside the trailer that (Jones) forced her way into ... said that she had an object in her hand. They believed it could have been a weapon," the sheriff said Tuesday. "And when she exited the house, the witness heard the suspect proclaim to whoever was outside — we now know that was the deputies — 'I have a gun, I'm going to shoot you.'"
Jones was found with a dark, metal tube after she was shot, but no gun. However, Salazar said deputies had seen Jones with a gun earlier as they chased her.
All four deputies have been placed on administrative leave. The sheriff's office is investigating. Bexar County District Attorney Nico LaHood's office said it will "analyze the initial work" of the investigation and "evaluate all additional evidence as it is gathered."
The probe is in its early stages, Salazar said.
LaHood's office said in a statement that it is "important to carefully review all of the facts and circumstances surrounding the officers' use of force and not form any premature conclusions before the investigation is finalized." It said if the deputies' actions "rise to the level" of a criminal offense, the office will take the appropriate steps.
Kameron was inside the mobile home when he was struck by a bullet as deputies fired on Jones. The boy died at a hospital.
"We're not going to rest until we have some answers," Salazar said. "I fully realize that (Kameron's) family is entitled to some answers. And it is my job to give them those answers. I'm not going to stop until I have them."
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Information from: San Antonio Express-News, http://www.mysanantonio.com
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