SAN ANTONIO – Just over a year after being shot in the face during a police pursuit, a San Antonio Police Department SWAT Officer is sharing why he decided to put the uniform back on.
Officer Rhett Shoquist, a nearly 7-year veteran with SAPD, said there was a reason why he wanted to join the police department in the first place.
“I came from the military,” he said. “I spent five years in the Marines. I liked certain aspects of that, but I wanted to move back home. I am someone who can’t sit still and need to move around and do stuff. My father also did this job for 30-something years, so I (liked) what it was about. It was something I wanted to try to be a part of. "
Shoquist said it is deeper than that.
“Someone needs to help protect the people who can’t protect themselves, and I know I am capable of doing that, and not everyone can,” he said. “So why not me, you know.”
Things changed on Aug. 24, 2023; Shoquist, his partner, and others on their team were tasked with helping in an operation that took a turn for the worse.
Authorities got a tip on the location of Jesse Garcia, who was wanted on three active warrants at the time, including burglary of vehicles, evading arrest with a vehicle and felon in possession of a firearm.
“We were called out to assist. I was driving the primary car following the suspect vehicle, and the bullet went through the windshield and struck me in the face,” Shoquist said. “He was shooting about four or five rounds at a time. We knew we could get hit at any time, but we were the best-equipped people to deal with it at that time, so we knew what to do.”
Shoquist said when he got hit, he immediately knew he lost his eye.
“I pulled over,” he said. “I didn’t crash, but I stopped the car and got out and started putting pressure on it. My partner took great care of me. I wasn’t scared or anything, but I started thinking logically. My thought was, ‘The bullet is in my brain. I am alive on adrenaline right now. Lights are going to go out at any second. I am about to die.’ I started thinking about my wife and kids and boys because I wanted that to be (the) last thing I was thinking about before I died.”
He said the fact that he was wearing his sunglasses that day was a miracle.
“What happened is that the bullet went through the sunglasses, so it changed the trajectory,” Shoquist said. “It pushed the round down so it went through my eye and through my cheek. But I didn’t feel my cheek blown out. I only felt (it) through my eye. When my partner told me it was bad but that it was just my eye and my cheek, I thought, ‘Ok, thank God. Let’s get to the hospital.’”
Shoquist’s first surgery took about eight hours.
“They sewed up my eyeball trying to save it,” he said. “It became apparent that I was never going to see out of it again. A week later, I had another surgery, and they had to remove it so I didn’t have to deal with that pain. My orbital bone and cheekbone was crushed, so I had a titanium plate put in my cheek to hold the bones together. I still have shrapnel and bullet fragments in my jaw, collarbone and neck.”
He said all he could think about was getting back to the job.
“I started asking what did I need to do to get back. What did I need to do to get back to training,” he said. “I was making up drills to work on my peripheral vision. I got these lights and set them up where I could barely see them, and they would alter red and green, and I would have to hit it as fast as I could, just working on my peripheral. I lost half of it.”
It took Shoquist about two months to fully recover, even though he lost his eye.
“It felt like a long time I was waiting to get back with the guys,” Shoquist said. “The SWAT team was so good to me and (my) family the night was out. I felt like I owed it to them to get back and be shoulder to shoulder with them and be in the fight with those guys.”
He said it wasn’t just his drive that kept him motivated to return.
“So much played a part,” he said. “Going in the Marines as a boy and coming out a man. My wife, my kids. Being a father and husband. All the things that molded me (into) the person I am. Having the support of the SWAT team. Brothers around me lifting me up and helping me get back. I think it plays a part in my recovery and getting me back so quickly. It wasn’t just me; it was my support system.”
Shoquist mentioned a funny conversation he had with his son when he got home from the hospital.
“I was in the hospital for a couple of days, but then I went home. My wife was asking why I (would not) tell my sons,” he said. My youngest was about to turn one and the older one was four. I thought, ‘I am going to just be very vague.’ So I walk in and I have this eyepatch and he was like, ‘Dad, what happened?’ I was like, ‘Daddy got hurt today.’ He started asking more and more questions, just digging and digging until I ultimately had to say, ‘Daddy got shot.’ He was like, ‘Oh ok … well, did you shoot him back?’ I said, ‘No.’ And he just threw his arms up all disappointed and was like, ‘Well, did you arrest him?’ And I said no, and he did the same thing, but I told him, ‘Daddy’s friend arrested him.’ But it was a funny conversation.”
He said he was even more thankful for his wife.
“She is the best human being I know,” he said. “(She is) my best friend, and she is really strong. She took care of me and (propped) me up. I wouldn’t be here doing the things I am doing if it was not for her.”
Garcia is still in the Bexar County Jail, facing several charges with a bond totaling $4.33 million.
“I have nothing to say to that person. It wasn’t a mistake,” he said. “It was a purposeful act and not just to me but to other officers. He’s faceless. He’s nameless. He is just a bad person who deserves to be in jail and should be in jail. He is dangerous to society. I don’t take it personally but as far as him. He is where he belongs, and I hope he stays there.”
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