1 killed, 4 wounded in Texas shooting

 
Xinhua, March 15, 2012

One person was killed and four wounded during a shooting outside a southeast Texas courthouse Wednesday morning, local police said.

The shooting occurred outside a courthouse in Jefferson County, according to ABC report.

Emergency personnel reportedly surrounded the downtown courthouse, located near the Port of Beaumont, about 80 miles east of Houston. The courthouse and surrounding areas were locked down.

The gunman, who was taken into custody after the shooting, was going to court with his family when he opened fire and shot several rounds, Doug Kibodeaux, a local police officer, was quoted as saying.

ABC quoted a county employee as reporting that the victims were visitors, not court employees.

The shooting is the second to happen outside a courthouse in the country in the past week. On March 7, a shooting outside the Tulsa County courthouse in Oklahoma left one deputy and three others injured.