The Story Behind the “Sheriff’s Office Shooter” Incident
“We thought we were dead”
By Greg Ritchie
Messenger Reporter
HOUSTON COUNTY – Saturday, March 15 was not the first time 35-year-old Clifford Robert Heniser had shown up at the Houston County Sheriff’s Office at 700 South 4th Street in Crockett last week. The Trinity native had visited only a few days before, on Wednesday, March 12, where he became combative with deputies, before Chief Deputy Ryan Martin placed him under arrest for disorderly conduct, along with a trespass warning not to return.
At approximately 7:18 a.m. Saturday, Heniser did return, to a sheriff’s office almost empty, except for a few unarmed dispatchers. Heniser entered the premises and according to Crockett Police Department’s (CPD) arrest report, claimed to be a federal agent and requested multiple records. Dispatchers told Heniser he would have to wait, and one of the on-duty deputies on patrol would be back to assist him.
“Heniser became irate and entered the vehicle he arrived in,” the report continued. “Heniser retrieved a firearm from his vehicle, re-entered the Sheriff’s Office lobby with the firearm in hand and continued to be irate with the dispatchers. Dispatch stated shortly after going to his vehicle, Heniser began shooting projectiles into the air from his AR pistol-style firearm in the Sheriff’s Office parking lot. The dispatchers stated they were in fear for their life, stating ‘We thought we were dead.’”
Those dispatchers had already seen Heniser returning to the lobby with his rifle and took measures to protect themselves.
“By this time, the dispatchers are hiding underneath their desks, but they still have access to the radios,” Houston County Sheriff Zak Benge continued the story. “They’ve already called for help and (Heniser) pushes the intercom button several times, because the dispatchers are not answering.”
Security cameras from the incident showed Heniser return to the parking lot, firing multiple rounds into the air from the rifle – initial reports indicated he emptied the 30-round magazine into the air while returning to his vehicle.
Returning to his 2001 white F-250 pickup truck, Heniser was confronted by CPD officers who arrived first on the scene.
“Heniser did not comply with multiple commands and was saying he was ensuring officers were complying with Donald Trump’s laws,” CPD’s arrest report noted. “Heniser stated he was a federal agent to enforce Trump’s order. Heniser repeatedly stated he was a federal agent. Heniser stated officers were not doing their job, arresting illegals and drug dealers. Heniser told officers to put their firearms down. Crockett Police Officers continued to give Heniser commands until he put his firearm down.”
Placing handcuffs on the suspect, CPD officers were able to secure the rifle, and discovered a 45 cal. Colt 1911 pistol, along with four additional magazines for the rifle. Benge reported nearly 500 rounds of ammo were collected overall, although the case is being led by CPD.
“Fortunately, for him, we (HCSO) had no officers at the building, because there would’ve been an engagement,” Benge said. “Our dispatchers are a very important part of our team but they don’t confront people in that fashion.”
Although Heniser had surrendered his weapons, Benge reported there was still plenty of fight left in him even after he was brought into the jail.
“We took him to the back and he was very uncooperative in the jail. He started doing self-injurious behavior and so we had to put him in a restraint chair and fight with him in the jail to get him cuffed and get him into the chair,” Benge explained. “Before he could even get booked in, he told our jail administrator that basically he’s not done and we will see him again. He said he was going to get out and we’ll see him again.”
Heniser is being held off-site, charged with deadly conduct, unlawful carrying of weapons with felony convictions (a second-degree felony), impersonating a public servant and criminal trespassing. As of press time, he is still in custody, held on a total bond of $101,000, although federal investigators may have more to say about bail and other charges.
For other aspects of this story, please see two related articles in today’s edition.
All suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]
