A retired Texas Ranger, the son of a Texas Ranger, Elliot Houston is to all appearances the quintessential cowboy, an image he carefully cultivates. After a quarter century with the Rangers, he chose to go into “private law enforcement,” as he calls it, working as an armed security specialist and private investigator, unencumbered by petty bureaucracy and regulations. A widower, he has a son and a daughter, both of whom were encouraged by their father to not follow in his footsteps when they chose their career paths.