The man survived, was released from a hospital and now faces two felony assault charges.
BEXAR COUNTY, TX — A Bexar County sheriff’s deputy shot a 38-year-old man June 23 after deputies said he advanced toward them with two knives during a call about attempted home break-ins near Alamo Ranch.
The Sheriff’s Office released body camera video July 7 showing the confrontation with Danh Thanh Dinh in the 8400 block of Knapp Rise, a residential street near Ranch View and Culebra Road. The video added new detail to a case that began as a series of 911 calls from frightened residents and ended with Dinh in critical condition at a hospital. He has since been booked into the Bexar County Adult Detention Center on two counts of aggravated assault against a public servant.
Deputies were sent to the neighborhood around 6 p.m. after callers reported a man armed with a knife trying to enter homes, according to the Sheriff’s Office. Earlier accounts placed the call closer to 6:30 p.m., as deputies and reporters gathered details that evening. Sheriff Javier Salazar said at the scene that neighbors had reported a man going onto porches, hiding near homes and waving knives. Salazar described the weapons as miniature samurai-style blades with about 10-inch blades. “An unfortunate incident of the man undergoing a mental health crisis,” Salazar said after the shooting.
The released critical incident video includes 911 audio, body camera footage and the shooting itself. One caller told dispatchers a man with a knife was trying to get into a home. Another caller said she and her children had gone upstairs while her husband armed himself, and a dispatcher told the family to stay inside because deputies were already there. Deputies Steven Calva, Frank Diaz and Jason Garces arrived and found Dinh outside a nearby home holding two knives, the Sheriff’s Office said. Body camera footage shows deputies speaking to him from across the street and repeatedly ordering him to drop the weapons.
One deputy tried to calm the encounter, telling Dinh they wanted to get him help and did not want anyone hurt. The video shows Dinh on or near a porch before he jumped down and moved toward Calva and Garces, according to investigators. Deputies ordered him to stop and drop the knives. The Sheriff’s Office said Dinh kept moving toward them while waving the weapons in a threatening manner. Calva then fired six rounds, striking Dinh. Emergency medical crews took him to University Hospital, where he was first listed in critical condition.
An arrest affidavit later said Dinh had gone to a neighbor’s home while bleeding from his arm, carrying two knives and trying to enter through a back door. The neighbor told a local television station he saw blood on the patio and on a child’s toy and sandpit, then leaned against the door to keep Dinh outside until deputies arrived. The neighbor said one deputy arrived about three minutes later, but Dinh had already moved to another home. Court records described the weapons as two mini samurai sword-type knives, and the affidavit said Dinh refused commands to put them down.
The incident also drew attention because deputies had been called to Dinh’s home for a welfare check one day before the shooting. The Sheriff’s Office said deputies who responded to that earlier call determined Dinh did not meet the standard for emergency detention at that time. Salazar said the office’s Mental Health Unit was dispatched during the June 23 call to help de-escalate the situation, but patrol deputies made contact with Dinh before that unit arrived. Authorities have not publicly detailed what led to the earlier welfare check or what changed between the two calls.
Dinh sustained at least two gunshot wounds, including wounds described in the affidavit as being to his belly and backside. He underwent treatment at University Hospital and was later transferred to the Bexar County Adult Detention Center. The Sheriff’s Office said Calva, a 16-year veteran of the agency, was the deputy who fired. Garces has two years of service with the Sheriff’s Office, and Diaz has been with the agency for 10 months. All three deputies were placed on administrative leave under department policy while the investigation continues.
The shooting remains under review by multiple units inside the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office and by the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office Civil Rights Division. The charges against Dinh accuse him of aggravated assault against public servants, a felony tied to allegations that he threatened deputies while armed. It was not immediately clear from available reports whether Dinh had an attorney listed in court records. Investigators have not said whether any residents or deputies suffered physical injuries before the shooting, apart from Dinh’s wounds.
For neighbors, the short encounter left a longer mark. The neighbor who said Dinh came to his back door described trying to secure his family inside the home as the armed man stood outside. He said his young child still reacts with fear to loud sounds after the incident. The 911 calls released by the Sheriff’s Office captured the same sense of alarm, with residents staying behind locked doors as deputies converged on the street. The footage shows a quiet neighborhood turning into an active law enforcement scene within minutes.
Dinh remained in county custody after his hospital release, and the deputies remained on leave as of the latest public updates. The next major step is the completion of the Sheriff’s Office review and the district attorney’s civil rights review of the shooting.
Author note: Last updated July 8, 2026.