Austin Man Shot, Killed By APD Officer After Hourslong Standoff

Austin TX

28 October, 2021

11:51 AM

Description

AUSTIN, TX — A man was shot and killed by an Austin police officer after an hourslong standoff that began after he shot at code enforcement for mowing his lawn in the city's southwest side. The man, who was in his 50s, died Wednesday at a local hospital after he was shot by an APD SWAT officer. Police say the man was shot at after he came out of his home with weapons. The incident began around 9:16 a.m. when the Austin Code Department visited a home at the 10600 block of Pinkney Lane where code enforcement intended to conduct lawn maintenance under an administrative warrant, Austin Police Chief Joseph Chacon told reporters on Wednesday. Live in Austin? Click here to subscribe to our free breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox and mobile devices. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and download our free mobile app on Android or iPhone. When no one answered the door, the city began mowing the man's lawn until they heard gunshots being fired at them from inside the home. Officials said no one was injured and officers and other personnel on scene were able to escape the gunfire and make it to safety. After the incident, police activated their SWAT team. When SWAT arrived with mental health officers and a crisis negotiator, they attempted de-escalation techniques and officers tried for several hours to make contact with the man inside, mostly using the public address system, Chacon said. During this time, Kiker Elementary School was also placed on a lockdown out of an abundance of caution. Chacon says that at 3:19 p.m. officers at the back of the home took several shots from someone inside and officers at the front of the home made entry with a robot, which found a fire that was spreading quickly inside the home. FINAL UPDATE: Media briefing for this critical incident was live-streamed on Facebook. @Chief_Chacon provided preliminary information to media regarding the investigation. 📺 https://t.co/9LCJwHpZaC— Austin Police Department (@Austin_Police) October 28, 2021 Officers continued to try and get the man to exit the home, but soon the house looked like it was fully engulfed in flames and it looked like the man had succumbed to the flames and smoke, says Chacon. The Austin Fire Department was then called in to put the fire out. Twenty minutes later, the man stepped out of his garage with weapons in hand. It is at that point that Chacon says a SWAT officer shot him and he went down. Officers approached and took his weapons, pulling the man away from the house, and began life-saving measures. The man was taken to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead at 4 p.m. The man's identity will not be released until police notify his next of kin, Chacon said. Chacon says there was no indication anyone else was in the house and the lockdown on Kiker Elementary was later lifted. The SWAT officer who shot the man is an eight-year veteran with APD and will be placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of the criminal and administrative investigations into the incident. It is unclear if any additional munitions were in the home or were set off by the fire.