Deputy Constable Neil Adams
Officer: San Jacinto County Constable's Office, Deputy Constable Neil Adams
Date: 2/23/2022 Location: Houston, TX FACTORS (1,4,7,12,14,15,20)
Perpetrator(s) Involved: Czyz Deonte Harrison
Criminal Activity History/Involved: Yes, Harrison’s criminal history spanned a decade and included “convictions for evading arrest, weapons, and drugs.” / No, there was no indication of illegal activity before Harrison assaulted Deputy Constable Adams.
Mental Illness: Yes, Harrison’s family members said they “were worried he may have suffered from some mental health problems.”
Substance Abuse History/Involved: Unknown, but Harrison does have prior drug-related arrests. / None stated.
Race/Sex/Age: Black/Male/35
What prompted the initial contact with the killer? At just before 4 p.m. on February 23, 2022, Deputy Constable Adams responded to a call of a disturbance at a clothing store in the mall he was working an extra job at as a security guard. Upon arriving at the store, Adams encountered the man who was creating the disturbance, Czyz Harrison.
Actions taken by subject toward police: A MMA fighter and boxing gym manager, the short but stocky Harrison “sucker punched Adams and took the deputy to the ground” before taking his duty gun and executing him with it as witnesses stood by and watched.
Reactions by the police: Harrison fled the store and was discovered in the mall’s food court by two Houston police officers who were responding to the shooting. Harrison advanced at the officers threatening them with “a sharp-edged weapon” and was justifiably shot.
How murdered? Deputy Constable Adams was beaten by a man creating a disturbance and then murdered with his own gun.
What could have been done differently for the officer to still be alive? This should have been a simple case of explaining to Harrison his credit card was rejected and he could not make the purchase, so Deputy Constable likely let his guard down and did not anticipate being attacked and then executed over such a petty, non-criminal incident.
Would the officer have been justified to use deadly force before being murdered? NA, Deputy Constable Adams was sucker punched and disoriented before he ever had a chance to defend himself against the younger, faster, professional fighter.
Outcome for the cop-killer: Harrison was justifiably shot dead by the two officers.
Miscellaneous: Harrison was an avid social media poster, one of which included an October 2021 tribute post to convicted cop-killer Assata Shakur and other known Black Panther Party leaders. At 62, Deputy Constable Adams was working the security job to supplement his sub-$40k salary as a law enforcement officer. Adams had informed his wife the security job was too dangerous, and this would be his last day working it.
