A few days ago, it started with gunfire. On Friday, it ended with applause.

Cheers rang out outside a Fort Worth hospital as Community Response Unit Specialist Edward Zapata stepped into the sunlight, walking toward a line of officers, family members, and teammates who had gathered to bring him home.

They called it a “Release Celebration.” It looked more like a hero’s welcome.

“Walking this man to his car today, it’s kind of hard to explain,” Fort Worth Police Chief Eddie Garcia said.

Zapata had been in the hospital since April 28, when what began as a routine burglary report turned into something far more dangerous.

Police said 39-year-old Angel Cantu crossed the street and opened fire in the 3500 block of Juliet Lane. During the shooting, a projectile from shrapnel struck Zapata in his left eye.

He was rushed to hospital. Other officers returned fire, but authorities said Cantu managed to get away, triggering a search that stretched for hours across the area, both on the ground and from the air.

He was eventually arrested.

Cantu now faces three counts of aggravated assault on a public servant and remains in the Tarrant County Jail. His bond is set at 100,000 dollars for each charge, according to jail records, which also show a parole violation.

For Zapata’s colleagues, the outcome could have been very different.

Instead, they were standing outside a hospital days later, clapping as he walked out.

“The week didn’t start off so well. It has ended that much better,” Garcia said.

The scene outside the hospital felt less like a formal ceremony and more like a collective exhale. Zapata paused to take photos with members of the Community Response Unit, the civilian team he had only recently joined.

It is a role designed to take pressure off frontline officers. CRU specialists handle non-emergency calls, collect evidence, direct traffic, and support investigations so sworn officers can focus on more urgent situations.

“It’s a tremendous help and not just for our department, but for the residents of the city of Fort Worth,” Garcia said.

Zapata had only just started.

He joined the unit on February 23, graduated from the academy on April 10, and began field training three days later.

Then came the shooting.

There is another layer to his story that those gathered Friday already knew. Zapata is a 30-year Marine veteran and a Purple Heart recipient. During his military service in Iraq, he suffered shrapnel injuries to his arm.

This was not his first time facing that kind of danger.

But this time, the crowd waiting for him included his wife and four children.

They stood nearby as the motorcycle unit led his escort away from the hospital, marking the moment with the kind of ceremony usually reserved for major milestones.

Relief was visible. So was gratitude.

“We all feel much better today, and I know his family does as well. He still has a long road. But it feels amazing,” Garcia said.

That road is still ahead. Recovery does not end at the hospital doors.

But for now, there was a moment to pause. A moment where a difficult week gave way to something lighter.

A man who had been injured doing his job walked out on his own.

And for everyone watching, that was enough.

Read more from WFAA.