More than two dozen protesters gathered at Wooldridge Park Tuesday afternoon under an unforgiving sun to demand accountability — and prosecution — for the officers involved in last week’s fatal shooting of a teenager identified Tuesday as Anthoneil Williams II.
Williams allegedly called police to report a young man brandishing a gun. Officers responded just after 4 a.m. last Friday and fired dozens of rounds into Williams after he lifted up his shirt. Williams was unarmed, carrying only a water bottle.
The officers involved in the shooting are on administrative leave, and the incident is under investigation.
Williams’ friend Ameer Alogaili, 16, said he always “put a smile on everybody’s face.” Alogaili attended Bohls Middle School and Connally High School with Williams. He said the officers “took a part of me with him” and asked for some accountability.
“[There are] so many families that are suffering right now all because of these cops and them wanting to shoot their guns at a little kid at a park for having a water bottle,” he said. “Long live Anthoneil.”
Anthoniel Williams, father of Anthoniel Williams II, hugs a person at Wooldridge Square during a protest against the shooting of his son by APD.
After remarks, the protesters marched to Travis County District Attorney José Garza’s office lobby, storming past metal detectors and chanting “Jail killer cops!” The protest escalated after one demonstrator approached a Travis County Sheriff’s deputy at the front desk. After staring down the crowd, the deputy locked himself away in a nearby room as an unidentified protester pounded on the door.
Two Travis County Sheriff’s deputies responded, pushing the crowd outside and barring the doors after a brief scuffle with demonstrators that was broken up by Anthoneil Williams II’s father. The elder Williams pleaded with protesters to fall back as another 10 deputies approached the DA’s office.
Garza campaigned on a platform to prosecute police misconduct. His office has secured indictments against police officers and brought officer-involved shootings to trial in the cases of Mike Ramos, Alexander Gonzales Jr. and Mauris DeSilva. None of those cases have resulted in an officer serving time. Demonstrators demanded Garza bring charges against the three officers in this case.
The DA’s office did not respond to a request for comment ahead of publication. Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said last week the DA’s office and APD’s Special Investigations Unit are handling a criminal investigation into the shooting.
People gather nearby as a U.S. flag is lit on fire outside the District Attorney’s Office.
Davis described the incident as a potential “suicide by police” in a briefing last week, but activist Cluren Williams (no relation) called that characterization “really irresponsible.”
“I think that’s just a way for Lisa Davis to spin the narrative and get ahead of the narrative before the blame came on the department,” he said. “It is dehumanizing.”
Cluren Williams’ younger brother was shot multiple times by Austin Police in 2017, later dying after an unsuccessful lawsuit for excessive force. Williams is helping his family through the fallout and commended the elder Anthoneil Williams for trying to keep the peace amid the chaotic demonstration.
“He’s grieving. He’s in pain. He’s hurt. He’s crying,” Williams said. “He don’t know who to trust, but he still is finding a way to do it the right way.”
The officers involved in the shooting were identified as Alexis Cruz, Jake Pitcher and Avery Zucchi. Cruz has been with the department for nearly four years, while Pitcher has been with APD for three and a half. Zucchi has been on the force for two years and 10 months. Pitcher was involved in an on-duty shooting in 2025 and was ultimately cleared by a Travis County grand jury.
Zucchi has been involved in multiple crashes during his time with APD, one of which resulted in a traffic fatality in 2025. APD cleared him of any wrongdoing and did not discipline him in that incident.
Pitcher has also been in multiple collisions while on the force. Davis gave him a one-day suspension earlier this year after a high-speed collision in 2025.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that none of the officers involved in the shooting of Anthoneil Williams II had previously been involved in on-duty shootings.