Denton Police Fatally Shoot Man at Pickleball Court During Welfare Check

A welfare check at the Denton Tennis and Pickleball Center ended with a 25-year-old Denton man dead after he allegedly charged at officers while holding a metal rod, then was shot by one of the responding officers. The Texas Rangers are leading the criminal investigation into the March 8 shooting.

Dispatchers at Denton Public Safety Communications received multiple 911 calls at 12:10 p.m. that Sunday, reporting an apparently intoxicated adult male at the pickleball courts on the 1100 block of Riney Road, at the edge of North Lakes Park. When officers arrived, they found the man, later identified by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office as Adrian Edward Guevara, on the north side of the courts. He had climbed on top of a fence and was holding a metal rod.

According to the City of Denton's official statement, Guevara told officers "they were going to have to kill him" and threatened them with the rod. Officers attempted to verbally de-escalate the situation. Guevara then climbed down from the fence and charged at them while still holding the metal rod.

One officer deployed a Taser, which struck Guevara but proved ineffective. A second officer then fired multiple shots, striking Guevara several times. Officers immediately rendered aid, and paramedics transported him to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. No officers or bystanders were injured.

The Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office listed the cause of death as gunshot wounds and the manner of death as homicide. Guevara was 25 years old and a Denton resident.

The officer who fired has been placed on administrative leave in accordance with department policy, while Denton PD's Internal Affairs division conducts an administrative investigation. The City of Denton directed all inquiries about the criminal investigation to the Texas Rangers, whose involvement in officer-involved shootings is standard practice under state protocol.

Key details remain unreleased, including the names of the officers involved, the number of rounds fired, and whether body-worn camera footage exists or will be made public. Toxicology results from the medical examiner have not been released, and no witnesses have been publicly identified.