The incident occurred in May 2025 in the intersection of the Research Boulevard northbound service road and North Lamar Boulevard, near Anderson Lane.
AUSTIN, Texas — A Travis County grand jury has cleared four Austin police officers involved in a May 2025 use-of-force incident that left an 18-year-old suspect injured.
According to Travis County District Attorney José Garza, the grand jury concluded its review earlier this month of the May 31, 2025, officer-involved shooting and did not return an indictment for Austin Police Department Officers Joseph Duesler, Kai Finch, Martin Vela and Vincent Nguyen.
“The Travis County District Attorney’s office takes the work of presenting all facts and evidence to a grand jury very seriously,” said Garza. “In this case, an independent group of members of the Travis County community heard the evidence and law and decided that Officers Duesler, Finch, Vela, and Nguyen’s conduct was not unlawful.”
Devin Guevara is accused of stealing a car, leading police on a chase, hitting another car and then shooting at officers, leading officers to fire back.
The incident occurred at the intersection of the Research Boulevard northbound service road and North Lamar Boulevard, near Anderson Lane.
APD said that night, officers tried to stop a vehicle that had been reported stolen. The vehicle drove away at a high speed, running red lights and leading to a brief chase.
At approximately 11:21 p.m., police said the vehicle hit a cement pillar along the Research Boulevard service road but continued to evade police. Shortly after, police said the suspect vehicle hit another vehicle in the intersection of the Research Boulevard service road and North Lamar. The crash caused the suspect vehicle to spin around and face oncoming traffic, according to APD.
It was at this time that officers started getting out of their vehicles and police said Guevara opened fire. Officers Duesler, Finch, Vela and Nguyen returned fire, striking Guevara in the collarbone. No officers were struck.
Police said after firing, officers saw Guevara moving inside the vehicle and told him to put his hands up and get out. Guevera complied and got out of the vehicle through the driver’s side window. He was detained and taken to a local hospital for treatment of his injuries, then booked into the Travis County Jail.
The interaction with Guevera was captured on officers’ body cameras and on dash cameras from the officers’ vehicles. APD has released those materials, as well as radio traffic audio. They are available to view on the department’s YouTube channel. Viewer discretion is advised.