By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
The mother of a man who shot a Del Rio police officer Sunday was arrested Monday after authorities said she tried to run over two other officers with her vehicle, court documents show.
Veronica Guadiana Vowell, 58, was arrested about 11:30 a.m. Monday and charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a first-degree felony, according to an affidavit filed in the case.
Justice of the Peace Pct. 3 Pat Cole set Vowell’s bond Tuesday at $1 million, or $500,000 on each count.
The affidavit, written by Del Rio Police Department Detective David Lopez, states Lopez and members of the department’s Criminal Investigations Division were executing a search warrant at 902 E. 10th St. at 10:44 a.m. Monday.
On Sunday, DRPD officers went to the East 10th Street residence after receiving a call about a vehicle alarm sounding with no one turning it off. The two officers who responded entered the residence after finding the front door open and encountered Vowell’s son, Eric Anthony Castillo, who fired on them, striking one officer in the upper thigh.
The officer’s wallet stopped the bullet. Castillo later surrendered to police and was charged with five felony offenses.
In the affidavit, Lopez wrote that DRPD Senior Officer F. Hernandez and Officer J. Maldonado were assisting him and other investigators in clearing the residence after police arrived Monday to execute the search warrant.
Lopez wrote that Hernandez went outside to provide perimeter security near the driveway. Hernandez was in full Del Rio Police Department uniform, and both Hernandez and Maldonado were standing near the shoulder of the roadway with no obstruction, according to the affidavit.
Lopez wrote that a few minutes after 11 a.m., he saw a gray Chevrolet Silverado traveling west in the 900 block of East 10th Street.
According to the affidavit, Vowell was driving the pickup.
Lopez wrote, “Uniformed officers attempted to stop the vehicle from going into the driveway of 902 E. 10th St. Officers stated stop and placed their hands in the air. Vowell disregarded them” and motioned for them to move.
Lopez wrote that Vowell then accelerated the vehicle toward both officers.
Lopez said Hernandez “quickly got himself and Maldonado out of the way, barely avoiding getting hit by the vehicle.”
No one was injured, and Lopez wrote that Vowell stopped the pickup in the driveway, where officers took her into custody.
Lopez also wrote that after he read Vowell her rights and questioned her at the Del Rio Police Department, she said she was not “a cop killer.”
According to Lopez, Vowell said she saw the officers in the roadway but did not hear them tell her to stop. When asked why she accelerated toward the officers, Lopez wrote, Vowell said she had never driven the truck before and confused the accelerator with the brake.
Cole magistrated Vowell by Zoom between her office and the GEO Correctional Facility, where Vowell is being held, about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.
During the hearing, Cole asked Vowell if she wanted to request a court-appointed attorney.
Vowell initially replied, “I wanted to speak to my husband.”
Cole told her she needed to make a decision and could change her mind later.
When Cole again asked whether she wanted a court-appointed attorney, Vowell responded, “I suppose so.”
Cole replied, “Okay, I’ll take that as a yes.”
Vowell then answered, “Yes.”
Cole informed Vowell that she had the right to an examining trial, and Vowell said she had no questions.
Cole also reviewed Vowell’s bond conditions, including a requirement that she not leave Val Verde County. Vowell expressed concern because she has a doctor’s appointment out of town, and Cole advised her to speak with the Adult Community Supervision Department.
At the end of the hearing, Vowell said, “I know my husband spoke to you, but I don’t have access to calling him.”
Cole responded, “Ma’am, your husband did not speak to me.”
Vowell replied, “Oh, I think he had said he spoke to you.”
Cole answered, “No, ma’am, I have not spoken to him.”
“Okay, alright, I’ll sign the papers,” Vowell said.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com
