Ernest Moore

Case record: Ernest Moore

STATUS

Ernest Moore was killed during a shoot-out with the police the same day. He was captured and later died at a hospital. Moore was killed resisting arrest on July 7, 1998.

Background

Ernest Moore and Susan Lynn Rodriguez came from law enforcement families, and they ended up on opposite sides of a gunfight.

Rodriguez was the daughter of retired El Paso Deputy Border Patrol Chief Steve Williams, and she was the first female Border Patrol agent killed in the line of duty. She had been assigned to the Harlingen station ever since joining the Border Patrol in 1992. Rodriguez was the mother of a 1-year-old girl, and she was married to an immigration officer.

Moore was the son of a longtime Harlingen police officer and the brother of a San Benito officer. His family was well-known in the city.

The offence

Authorities said Moore was fleeing a murder scene and ambushed pursuing law officers in a corn field.

Moore killed two women and then killed Border Patrol agents and a sheriff’s deputy in the ensuing shootout.

Investigation

A group of officers, including three Border Patrol agents who joined the pursuit at the request of local authorities, went to the Moore home to talk to his parents. When they were preparing to leave, Moore emerged from a nearby cornfield and opened fire with a semiautomatic rifle. The Texas Department of Public Safety said Moore ambushed the officers and opened fire.

Cameron County Sheriff Omar Lucio said deputies spotted the truck and gave chase.

Immigration and Naturalization Service commissioner Doris Meissner said:

"We in INS and in this community have suffered a tragic loss,"

Meissner also said:

"The deaths of these fine, young people cannot go unpunished,"

KENS reported that the rampage began when police in the Harlingen suburb of Rio Hondo received a 911 call of shots fired at a house at about 5:30 a.m.

Texas Department of Public Safety information described Moore’s conduct as shooting that began at a girlfriend’s house and later involved law officers.

Timeline

• about 5:30 a.m. — Police in the Harlingen suburb of Rio Hondo received a 911 call of shots fired at a house.
• same day — Moore was killed during a shoot-out with the police.
• July 7, 1998 — Moore was killed resisting arrest.
• July 8, 1998 — Moore died at a hospital.

Arrest and death

Moore was captured and later died at a hospital after the shoot-out.

A sheriff’s deputy was critically wounded in southern Texas during the shootout, and two Border Patrol agents were killed.

People involved

Ernest Moore

Ernest Moore was the suspect. Authorities said he was fleeing a murder scene and ambushed pursuing law officers in a corn field. He was killed during a shoot-out with police and later died at a hospital after being captured. He was killed resisting arrest on July 7, 1998.

Victims and other named individuals

Susan Lynn Rodriguez

Susan Lynn Rodriguez was killed in the line of duty during the gunfight. She was 28. She was the daughter of retired El Paso Deputy Border Patrol Chief Steve Williams, and she was the first female Border Patrol agent killed in the line of duty. She joined the Border Patrol in 1992 and had been assigned to the Harlingen station ever since. She was married to an immigration officer and was the mother of a 1-year-old girl.

Ricardo Guillermo Salinas

Ricardo Guillermo Salinas was among four people killed by Moore. He was 24 and was from San Antonio. He had graduated from the Border Patrol academy last January.

Margarita Flores

Margarita Flores was shot to death in a hallway in her home. She was 53.

Delia Morin

Delia Morin was shot to death in a hallway in her home. She was 31.

Dan Morin

Dan Morin was critically wounded. He was 22.

Julie Cox

Julie Cox was identified as Moore’s ex-girlfriend, and she was a house guest at the house where shots were fired. Dan Morin had been dating Moore’s ex-girlfriend, Julie Cox, for about a month.

Doris Meissner

Doris Meissner was the Immigration and Naturalization Service commissioner. She made statements about the loss and about the deaths “cannot go unpunished.”

Vicki Buffolino

Vicki Buffolino of CBS affiliate KENS reported on the rampage.

Carlos Gonzalez

Carlos Gonzalez was Rio Hondo Police Chief. He said Moore went to the house seeking a former girlfriend who was a house guest; she was not injured.

Omar Lucio

Omar Lucio was Cameron County Sheriff. He said deputies spotted the truck and gave chase.

Lucy Preco

Lucy Preco was neighbor Lucy Preco, who told KENS she saw silhouettes coming around the house. She said:

"I jumped out of bed and I looked out, " neighbor Lucy Preco told KENS. She said she saw only silhouettes coming around the house.

Steve Williams

Steve Williams was the retired El Paso Deputy Border Patrol Chief and Rodriguez’s father.

Additional named individuals and roles

• Michael Newton — identified in the material as “An Encyclopedia of Modern Serial Killers - Hunting Humans.”
• INS / Immigration and Naturalization Service — Doris Meissner’s agency.

Places

• southern Texas
• Harlingen suburb of Rio Hondo
• Rio Hondo
• near San Benito
• Moore family home area near San Benito
• a corn field where Moore emerged and opened fire
• Harlingen station

Method and weapon

Moore opened fire with a semiautomatic rifle during the ambush. Earlier in the incident, the material described shots fired at a house at about 5:30 a.m. and Moore turned and started shooting after Flores emerged from a bathroom.

Motive and context

The gunfight followed what the material described as a jealous rampage over an ex-girlfriend. Moore sought a former girlfriend who was a house guest, and the material reported that Dan Morin demanded Cox leave with him when Flores unexpectedly emerged from a bathroom and Moore turned and started shooting.

Outcome and aftermath

In the 74-year history of the Border Patrol, 81 agents had been killed in the line of duty, including two previous deaths earlier in the year. The material described the deaths of the victims as a “tragic loss” and said they “cannot go unpunished.”