Austin police say the 17-year-old who was shot was unarmed. Neighbors say the tragedy has left a lasting impact on their community.
AUSTIN, Texas — Neighbors in northeast Austin say they are still trying to process what happened after Austin police released body camera video and new details Friday about an shooting involving Austin police that left a 17-year-old dead.
According to the Austin Police Department, officers responded to a 911 call reporting a person in the area who was possibly armed with a gun. Police later determined the 17-year-old who was shot made the 911 call himself.
This story continues below.
“We were quite alarmed by it, but at that time we really weren’t sure what had happened, you know?” neighbor Jeffrey Metzger recalled.
The shooting happened Friday morning near a neighborhood park on Baden Lane.
“We watched the videos, the slow motion videos, talked to people and I’m kind of mixed in my mind. I know it was a water bottle, but I fully understand that the police, you know, that was an active threat and the way the person moved,” Metzger said. “But the bottom line is, somebody died in our community.”
“I woke up actually, and I saw it, and it was pretty shocking that it happened literally right in front of our neighborhood, at the pool where we were at just last weekend,” neighbor Patrick Torres said.
Police said officers later discovered the 17-year-old had a water bottle tucked into his waistband and did not recover a firearm.
Investigators also said the teen called 911 on himself, leading them to believe the incident may have been “suicide by police.”
KVUE asked APD how investigators determined the 17-year-old made the 911 call. The department said it is not releasing additional details at this time.
James Keith, director of external relations for the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center at Texas State University, said officers are trained to make split-second decisions using the information available to them at the time.
“It’s something that they have to go through a lot of training for, because there is so many changing situations,” Keith said. “When you’re dealing with a mental health situation, there are so many unknowns.”
Keith said officers do not have the benefit of knowing information investigators may uncover later.
“An officer is ultimately trying to deescalate a situation. They want to go home at night. They want everybody that they interact with to go home at night. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen, and it’s really easy for us to go after the fact and say, ‘this should’ve been done or this should’ve been done,'” Keith said. “The reality is they don’t have that benefit of hindsight.”
For neighbors, they said the investigation is only part of the story.
“The footage was disturbing, because it hit home,” Metzger said. “It was right on the jungle gym where my grandchildren play, and we swim in the pool and I know we’ll be thinking of that.”
The three officers involved remain on administrative leave while APD conducts both criminal and internal investigations. Police said additional body camera video from other responding officers will not be released until the case is closed.