Houston Methodist doctor on bike fatally shot at Texas Medical Center

FILE - This photo from 2000 shows cardiologist Mark Hausknecht, left, who once treated former President George H.W. Bush, was shot and killed while riding a bicycle in Houston. FILE - This photo from 2000 shows cardiologist Mark Hausknecht, left, who once treated former President George H.W. Bush, was shot and killed while riding a bicycle in Houston. Photo: DAVID J. PHILLIP/Associated Press Photo: DAVID J. PHILLIP/Associated Press Image 1 of / 14 Caption Close Houston Methodist doctor on bike fatally shot at Texas Medical Center 1 / 14 Back to Gallery

A Houston doctor who was riding his bicycle to work in the Texas Medical Center on Friday morning was gunned down by another cyclist who passed him, turned and fired two shots, and then rode off.

The fatal shooting of Dr. Mark Hausknecht, a cardiologist who once treated former President George H.W. Bush, stunned the city's tight-knit medical community and left investigators trying to determine whether the daylight shooting was random or targeted.

A spokesman for Bush said the former president was saddened by Hausknecht's death and sent his condolences to the doctor's family, his colleagues at Houston Methodist hospital and his friends.

"Mark was a fantastic cardiologist and a good man," Bush said in a statement. "I will always be grateful for his exceptional, compassionate care. His family is in our prayers."

Hausknecht, 65, was shot around 8:50 a.m. in the 6600 block of Main Street. He died at Ben Taub Hospital.

The doctor was traveling northbound on Main Street at the intersection with Holcombe Boulevard when the gunman passed him, Houston police said. Two blocks later, the gunman turned around on his mountain bike and fired at least two shots at Hausknecht, who immediately went down, as the shooter kept riding north.

The suspect remained at large Friday evening, police said. He was described as a clean-shaven white or Hispanic male, about 30 years old, who was wearing a gray warmup jacket, khaki shorts, a tan baseball cap and sunglasses. Police said he is about 5 feet 10 inches tall with a slender build.

Homicide detectives were reviewing surveillance video from businesses in the area to find video of the gunman.

"There are a lot of cameras, so we're hoping we can get some footage of this and bring this violent criminal into custody, where he needs to be right away," said Executive Assistant Chief Troy Finner of the Houston Police Department.

The slaying stunned colleagues in the medical center, where Hausknecht had admitting privileges at Houston Methodist and Memorial Hermann hospitals.

Dr. Marc Boom, president of Methodist, delivered the news to hospital employees in an email early Friday afternoon. He wrote that Hausknecht's patients "appreciated his kind bedside manner and the extra time he took to answer their questions and fully explain their condition and treatment."

"We will all miss seeing Mark in the hallways and seeing patients in the cath lab and (coronary care unit), where he was known as a compassionate physician with a phenomenal bedside manner," wrote Boom. "Our employees who worked with him said patients were so proud to call him their doctor."

Hausknecht received his medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine in 1980 and did his residency and fellowship at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.

In 2000, he appeared at a news conference at Methodist with Bush after the 41st president was treated for an irregular heartbeat. He had been transferred from a Florida hospital.

Memorial Hermann also issued a statement, which said Hausknecht was "a talented, compassionate physician who provided excellent care to our patients, and he was a cherished friend to so many within the close-knit medical community that is the Texas Medical Center. During this difficult time, our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with Dr. Hausknecht's loved ones, his patients and his colleagues."

Hausknecht, a leader with Houston Cardiovascular Associates, had been in practice in Houston since 1987. He was an interventional cardiologist, a specialty that treats cardiovascular disease and congenital and structural heart conditions through catheter-based procedures, such as angioplasty and stenting.

Dr. Neal Kleiman, who worked closely with Hausknecht as medical director of the cath lab at the DeBakey Heart and Vascular Center at Methodist, said colleagues at Methodist were in shock Friday. He called the act "devastating, such a random act of violence taking away someone you know and love."

He said he couldn't imagine anyone carrying a grudge against Hausknecht.

"He was quiet, thoughtful, gentle," said Kleiman. "I shared patients with him, and they all loved and admired him."

Hausknecht biked to work every day, said Kleiman. He said Hausknecht took exceptional care of himself and found biking to work relaxing.

At a street removed from the shooting, nurses and doctors in scrubs and white coats walked, biked and hopped off the rail to get to work on Fannin Street, a reminder of how populated the area is with foot traffic.

Miguel Fraire, who does contract work at the medical center, said that an illusion of safety might exist in the area.

"Do I think it's safe around here?" asked Fraire. "I think for the most part. But you'd be surprised."

A spokesperson for the Texas Medical Center declined to answer questions about the center's security accommodations, saying they were not the best source to answer them.

Homicide detectives asked residents near Southgate Boulevard at Travis Street to check surveillance cameras for the period between 8:40 a.m. and 9 a.m. Friday and to contact HPD Homicide if they saw the suspect.

The suspected gunman was last seen on a light-colored mountain bicycle traveling west on Southgate Boulevard.

Reports of the shooting prompted a brief shelter-in-place order at the BioScience Research Collaborative at Rice University early Friday.

The news was just starting to hit employees at Houston Methodist in the early afternoon.

Panetta Grice, a patient care assistant at the hospital, said that while the Texas Medical Center area appears to be safe, the shooting is an unfortunate reminder of how important it is to be mindful of your surroundings, no matter where you are.

"I haven't digested it," Grice said. "Who would dream you'd have to go through something like that? It's just too hard to take."

Victoria Cheyne contributed to this report.

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