3 Hospitalized After Austin Protests Against Police

AUSTIN, TX — A teenage boy, an adult male and a pregnant woman were hospitalized after being hit by impact munitions fired by police during the weekend protests against law enforcement, the police chief said in an update to the violence that erupted this weekend.

Austin Police Chief Brian Manley on Monday provided a 30-minute briefing on violence and destruction across the city stemming from the weekend protests against police. One victim is a 16-year-old boy who was struck in the face by impact munition on Saturday, video of the bloody aftermath shared widely on social media.

Family members have since identified the teen as Brad Levi Ayala, and have set up a GoFundMe campaign to help defray hospital costs — raising nearly $62,000 at last check. "He is only 16 and his family is struggling to pay the medical bills and recover from this tragedy," family members wrote on the fundraising page, accompanying the narrative with photos of the bloody teen at the protest scene as well as images of the boy being treated at a hospital.

"He was standing quietly on a hill when a rubber bullet hit him in the head," the family wrote. "He is recovering and stable but the recovery will be a long process. Anything would help. In a time when so many are divided let’s comet together in love to help this family!"

Manley said police video of the incident is being analyzed, and asked residents who filmed the incident to allow officers to study the footage.

On Sunday, a 20-year-old African American man also was injured after being hit in the forehead by a beanbag munition, causing him to fall and hit his head on the concrete. Protesters carried the man underneath the 8th Street bridge to aid him before being advised by officers to return him to police headquarters for police treatment. As they brought the man back, the chief said, the protesters were met with non-lethal munitions fired by officers.

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The chief said the officer who fired the round actually meant to hit a man next to the victim who had thrown a water bottle and backpack at officers standing guard in front of police headquarters. Manley said the victim is now "fighting for his life" in critical condition at a hospital. "We are praying for this young man and his family, and hope he recovers quickly."

Another notable injury centered on an African American woman struck in the belly by a non-lethal munition, the chief said. Her condition is unknown.

Manley said some 15 officers also sustained injuries after being struck by objects — water bottles, rocks, fireworks and the like — or twisting their ankles. One of the most severe injuries was one centered on an officer whose face shield was cracked by a thrown object, which cut his skin. The officer received stitches at a hospital but was otherwise okay, the chief said.

The police chief broke down emotionally after saying he would like to speak to the families of the protesters most severely injured. ""This is not what we set out to do in the police department," he said. "I'm crushed. I've cried a few times today. It's rough."

Protests broke out across the country after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, who died after an officer kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes. In Austin, residents also have decried the fatal shooting of Michael Ramos, 42, an unarmed man a caller had falsely told police was brandishing a firearm outside an apartment complex in South Austin on April 24.

Manley said at his briefing that he would apprise Austin City Countil of protest-related violence at the next meeting on Thursday.

Officials at the Austin Justice Coalition — who had canceled a planned protest on Sunday amid safety concerns —on Tuesday called for police accountabiity over the injured protesters, who are all minorities.

“The horrible and unnecessary shootings over the weekend, after the death of Mike Ramos, is a stark reminder that we are also fighting for a new vision for public safety right here in Austin,” Executive Director Chas Moore said in a prepared statement.“Protesters were angry but there was no need to meet that anger with new violence. We have long called for a world without police, and right now Austin needs to take steps towards a smaller, less lethal, better police force in the meantime. And the first step is new leadership who agrees.”

Added Sukyi McMahon, operations director for the Austin Justice Coalition: “At AJC, our goal first and foremost, is to protect black and brown bodies and lives. We are in the middle of an epidemic and we are still in this fight for our black bodies. We are here for Brenda Ramos, and the other families that are grieving, and continue to grieve over the injuries and deaths from police brutality," he said, referencing the mother of an unarmed man fatally shot by police on April 24.

Kathy Mitchell, member of Austin Justice Coalition policy team, called for an overhaul of police brass in light of the weekend clashes between law enforcement officials and protesters: “We need police leadership who will actually make big changes, not fight us until we agree to compromised measures,” she said. “When we agreed to a compromised version of our proposed de-escalation policy, we got something that clearly isn’t working. But we agreed because it was very clear that our current police leadership would agree to nothing rather than something with teeth.”

McMahon echoed the sentiments: "Six weeks ago we walked away from important reforms because the current police leadership is not a partner but instead has been pulling in the opposite direction,” McMahon said. “It is time for the City of Austin to ask police leadership to step down and to bring in leaders with vision for a more peaceful future.”