A 51-year-old man named Sylas Smart (questionable surname choice) kicked off an afternoon of pure Lubbock chaos after getting into a dispute with a woman, then deciding the natural next step was to harass an off-duty cop via doorbell cam. Because nothing says “healthy conflict resolution” like lurking behind a tree and opening fire on a family pulling into their own driveway.
The off-duty officer—who probably thought he was coming home to a quiet Thursday—had to gun it through a fence to escape with his family, because apparently we’re doing high-speed cul-de-sac breakouts now. From there, Smart took off on a neighborhood parkour spree: backyards, rooftops, alleys, home invasions, teen confrontations—basically a full tour of southwest Lubbock’s property lines, minus the permission.
Three officers searching for him were also fired upon, because why limit the charges to “just a handful”? But credit where it’s due: the guy finally surrendered “without incident,” if you don’t count everything that happened up to that moment. He dropped his gun and was taken into custody after guiding half the city’s law enforcement apparatus on the most chaotic foot chase since Lubbock discovered TikTok.
And yes, every badge within a 200-mile radius apparently showed up: SWAT, DPS, ATF, U.S. Marshals, K-9s, Motors, Fire Marshals, Special Ops, the Anti-Gang Center, plus probably a few confused mail carriers who got caught in the perimeter. No injuries were reported, which might be the closest thing to a miracle this town has seen all month.
Smart now faces enough felony charges to constitute a personal bingo card, with a bond set at $1 million. If convicted on everything, he may finally get the stability he’s been looking for—just, you know, in a state-run housing facility.
At this point, should Lubbock just issue frequent-flier punch cards for multi-agency police responses?
