ATX Shooting: Stephen Broderick Arrested On Capital Murder Charge

Austin TX

19 April, 2021

9:48 AM

Description

AUSTIN, TX — A former Travis County Sheriff's deputy involved in a shooting that left three people dead at the Arboretum Oaks Apartments apartment complex Sunday has been captured, authorities said. Stephen Nicholas Broderick, a former property crimes detective with the county, was taken into custody without incident around 7 a.m. Monday in the 12300 block of Kimbro Road near Manor, according to the Austin Police Department and Travis County Sheriff's Office. Authorities said the 41-year-old was captured after they received 911 reports of a man walking along U.S. Highway 290. Manor Police and Travis County Sheriff's Office deputies took the former deputy into custody. A loaded pistol was taken from Broderick's waistband, officials with Manor PD said. Dashcam footage of Broderick's arrest was released to Patch Austin from Manor Police Department on Monday. See the video below. Broderick was arrested on a warrant for capital murder, a felony offense, Travis County District Attorney José Garza said in a news statement Monday. Broderick was booked into Travis County Jail at 9:30 a.m. Monday. A second-degree felony charge for motion off bond was also issued. A bond was not available for Broderick. The district attorney's office requested the former deputy to not be released on bond because the DA said he committed a "heinous crime" after he paid a money bond to be released on charges related to sexual assault of a child last summer. "Our office will ensure that Mr. Broderick remains in custody and is held accountable. My heart continues to break for the victims of this senseless act of violence, their families, and for the anguish of our community," Garza said. "The District Attorney's office will move forward to present capital murder and other appropriate charges to a Travis County grand jury." Broderick is the accused shooter in what police have described as a domestic violence incident. Austin police identified Amanda Broderick, Broderick's ex-wife, Alyssa Marie Broderick and Willie Simmons III as the three people killed in Sunday's Northwest Austin shooting. The Elgin school district identified Alyssa Broderick and Willie Simmons III Monday as former students in the school district. Here's the original story: 3 Dead In NW Austin Apartment Shooting; Suspect Identified Elgin ISD Superintendent Dr. Jodi Duron said in a statement Broderick was "an excellent student and athlete" and an Elgin ISD student in the Early College High School program from 2009 to October 2020 before withdrawing. She also played girls' basketball. Simmons III was an Elgin High School senior and "an exceptional young man and leader among his peers. Strong, both academically and athletically, he represented the very best of Elgin ISD." He was the captain of the football team and was recruited to play football for the University of North Texas. "The Elgin ISD community grieves the loss of these two young, promising souls," Duron said. Austin Police Department Interim Chief Joe Chacon told reporters officers received a 911 call around 11:42 a.m. Sunday for a "shoot/stab hotshot," the highest level priority call, in the 9600 block of Great Hills Trail and Rain Creek Parkway. When officers arrived, they found three victims that had appeared to have been shot lying near two vehicles possibly involved in a crash. Officials with the Austin-Travis County EMS said paramedics had obtained "deceased on scene pronouncements" for three adults at the complex. Shortly after, police locked down the area and encouraged residents to stay indoors as they searched the area of the shooting suspect. Chacon later told reporters the suspect was identified as Broderick. After hours of searching for the 41-year-old, the chief of police said authorities lifted its shelter-in-place order around 4:45 p.m. after exhausting its resources in the search. With the FBI involved, he said the search would become a "fugitive search." The former sheriff's deputy spent 16 days in jail last summer on charges of sexually assaulting a child family member. Broderick, then posted bail, which was set at $50,000, on June 22, according to the Austin American-Statesman. The courts ordered him not to contact or go within 200 feet of the child. Broderick was also ordered to wear a GPS tracking device. Austin PD said Monday an investigation revealed Amanda Broderick and the suspect were meeting for a scheduled visit with their son at the complex when a car collision occurred on Sunday. The former sheriff's deputy fired shots, killing all three victims, before fleeing the scene. The couple's son, who was present during the shooting, but physically unharmed, was later located away from the scene where he was turned over to officers. Authorities said a clear motive for the incident has not yet been determined. The Travis County Medical Examiner's office will conduct autopsies to determine an official cause of death for all three victims. "I'm truly heartbroken that a former Travis County Sheriff's Office Deputy is the suspect in such a horrific incident. TCSO is standing by to provide any, and all assistance we can to the families of the victims in their time of need," said county sheriff Sally Hernandez.