Austin Texas Community

Police Chief Joseph Chacon said at 4:54 a.m. on Thursday, July 20, a 911 call came in indicating a woman was frantically knocking on the door of an apartment at the Tides at South Lamar complex, located at 3622 Menchaca Road. The caller said the woman was asking for help.

One minute later, APD officers headed to the residence, where they arrived four to five minutes later and spoke with the woman who was knocking on the door. The woman told police there was a man chasing her throughout the complex and that she feared for her life.

The officers broadcasted that a man was seen running west through the complex. Chacon said that body camera video from the responding officers showed the man had a weapon that looked like a knife.

According to Chacon, the officers ordered the man to drop the weapon before drawing their weapons and trying to de-escalate the situation.

Chacon said that the man yelled at the officers to shoot and kill him. One officer attempted to TASER the man, but it was ineffective. The officers continued to command the man to drop his weapon. A second officer then attempted to TASER the man again, but that was also ineffective, according to Chacon.

It was at this time that a third officer fired his weapon and the man went down. Life-saving measures were performed, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

#BREAKING: @Austin_Police is investigating a deadly officer involved shooting that happened in the 3600 block of Manchaca Rd. A man is dead after police say he approached officers with a weapon, they say could have been a knife in the parking lot of the Tides Apartments pic.twitter.com/nhpP11RCPT — Eric Pointer (@EricPointerTV) July 20, 2023

Chacon said that the officer who fired their weapon is now on paid administrative leave, per APD's policy. Also per APD policy, the body camera video from the responding officers will be released within 10 days, according to Chacon.

"Our officers are placed in extremely difficult situations every single day. I can tell you that these type of things happen, unfortunately, on a regular basis. And most of the time, we are able to deescalate them, get people into custody safely and with either no injury or minimal injury," Chacon said. "This is just a tragic circumstance. And we've got to take care of officers, as well as take care of the scene and the family of all involved."

[YouTube] LIVE: Austin police provide updating on shooting involving officer | KVUE

Chacon said this is believed to be an isolated incident, and there is no information to indicate any danger to the public. The woman involved in the incident is safe and believed to be uninjured. It is not known if she lives at the complex.

No information is available about the man involved in this incident, and it is unclear how he and the woman knew each other.

This investigation is being conducted by APD's special investigation unit.

An upcoming project by the Austin’s Transportation and Public Works Department aims to improve pedestrian and bike access along East Fifth Street as part of two planned efforts by CapMetro to double-track the Red Line rail transit network along its existing path through East Austin. The project’s pedestrian upgrades will focus on the stretch of East Fifth Street between Navasota and Pedernales Streets, which includes the rail-adjacent Red Line Parkway trail and connections to other pedestrian networks including the MoKan Trail, Crosstown Bikeway, and EastLink Trail.

In the general area between Navasota and Pedernales Streets, the Red Line Parkway itself will be rebuilt as a combination of “shared-use paths, shared quiet streets, and sidewalks,” according to the city. The currently poor state of the street surface in this area will also be addressed as part of the project. Designs for the streetscape along East Fifth Street will vary based on available space, with the narrower sections of the plan integrating “shared street” features. Here’s a look at cross-sections of the three proposed layouts for different sections of these trail improvements:

A view of rail corridor improvements planned for the stretch of East Fifth Street between Comal and Chicon Streets. In this wider section, protected two-way bike lanes are included.

A view of rail corridor improvements planned for the stretch of East Fifth Street between Chicon and Robert T Martinez Jr. Streets. As the space is narrower in this section, the bike and pedestrian path uses a shared design.

A view of rail corridor improvements planned for the stretch of East Fifth Street between Robert T Martinez Jr. and Pedernales Streets. As this section is the most narrow of the improvement area, a shared street design will be used to route bikes, pedestrians, and automobile traffic on the same path.

The pedestrian and bike infrastructure through this area tends to fly a little under the radar, unless you happen to use them yourself — but with the promise of Project Connect’s future improvements to Austin’s nascent rail network, now is a great time to pursue these adjacent infrastructure upgrades. The city is currently seeking public feedback on these plans, with a virtual open house now available for your perusal.

Of course, if you feel that our cursory overview of the plans for this area have informed you enough, you can always go ahead and fill out the city’s survey on the project between now and Monday, August 14. It doesn’t take long to tell the city your likes and dislikes about the design seen here, and if you’ve ever walked or biked in East Austin before — or perhaps would enjoy doing so if the infrastructure was more accommodating — we promise it’s worth five minutes of your time.