AUSTIN, Texas — Austin police are actively searching for a suspect following a shooting involving an Austin Police officer in North Austin overnight. According to Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis, the incident happened early this morning near East Rundberg Lane and Parkfield Drive, after an officer witnessed a drive-by shooting at Northgate and Rundberg.
Davis says the officer reported the incident to dispatch and pursued the suspect vehicle, which eventually turned onto Parkfield Drive.
“The officer exited his vehicle, gave a warning, and gave commands. The vehicle continued. The officer fired two shots,” said Davis. Shortly after, the suspect vehicle was discovered parked on a side street with a victim inside suffering from a gunshot wound to the neck. The suspect, however, remains at large.
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Jessica Dominguez, a resident of the area, described the situation as concerning but not surprising. “It can be a bit concerning. I mean, obviously, this is my neighborhood. This is my community. I don’t want someone dangerous on the loose that could be hurting the people around me that we care about,” she said.
Dominguez noticed something was up when she saw helicopters flying over her neighborhood. “At first, I was just thinking whether or not they were like the EMS helicopters. They’re usually yellow. I was kind of staring at them, but you know, it was dark.”
Then Dominguez says she realized they were police helicopters, saying, “At that point, I feel like that thing is kind of common around here, so I didn’t really give it a second thought and just went inside.”
Dominguez added that such incidents are unfortunately common in this part of Austin, saying, “I feel like it’s very desensitized at this point. It’s not really a second thought.”
Police are still investigating whether the officer inflicted the gunshot wound sustained by the victim in the vehicle or if it occurred before the officer’s involvement.