ALERT: Houston Police Confirm Shooter Dead, 2 Injured After Gunfire at Osteen Church During Service

By Becca Lower | 6:36 PM on February 11, 2024

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There's a news alert out of Houston this Sunday, as police confirm to multiple media outlets that a shooter has been killed after gunfire interrupted a service at Lakewood Church, TV personality and pastor Joel Osteen's megachurch, leaving two injured, one critically.

There is an active situation involving shots fired at Lakewood. Law enforcement is on the scene.
That is all the information we have at this time. Please pray for Lakewood and our community.
— Lakewood Church (@lakewoodchurch) February 11, 2024

Details are still developing, as there is still an active crime scene investigation underway, but here is what's being reported at the time of this writing.

via AP:

HOUSTON (AP) — A woman in a trenchoat entered the Houston megachurch of celebrity pastor Joel Osteen and started shooting Sunday afternoon and was killed by two off-duty officers working security, police said. They added a young child with the woman was critically hurt and another man nearby was wounded.
Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said the woman entered the church with a long gun and a backpack shortly before 2 p.m. on Sunday, accompanied by a child about 4 or 5 years old. He said the child was in critical condition after being taken to a hospital.
The shooting happened between services at the megachurch that is regularly attended by 45,000 people every week, making it the third largest megachurch in the U.S., according to the Hartford Institute for Religion Research. Osteen’s televised sermons reach about 100 countries.

On hearing news of the shooting, Republican Governor Greg Abbott released a statement, which said, "our hearts are with those impacted by today’s tragic shooting and the entire Lakewood Church community in Houston. Places of worship are sacred.”

Prayers for the victims and the people of the Lone Star state would be appropriate at a time like this. How awful, especially just days away from the start of the Lenten season on Feb. 14.

RedState will update this developing story with any updates that emerge in the coming hours and days.