Austin Erupts In Protest Over Officer-Involved Killings

AUSTIN, TX — Protests turned violent in Austin on Saturday as people took to the streets condemning the recent death of a man in Minneapolis at the hands of a police officer — an incident that has sparked demonstrations across the U.S. — and an earlier officer-involved in Austin that left an unarmed man dead.

Protesters took to downtown streets starting late Friday, but the demonstrations began to take full shape by Saturday afternoon — with estimates by some media outlets placing the size of the crowd at around 1,000. At around noon, some 200 people showed up outside police headquarters in peaceful protest before the crowds swelled exponentially.

Marchers headed alongside Interstate 35 after protesting in front of the police station before marching on to downtown streets in a traffic-stopping display of civil disobedience. Police reported they had made at least a dozen arrests, and there were reports of one business being damaged and small fires being set.

Multiple media outlets reported police had resorted to deploying tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds near police headquarters on 8th Street just before 2:30 p.m. According to reports, some 100 police officers in full riot gear made their presence known in a show of force at the intersection of Guadalupe and West 3rd streets. The police response took to the air as well, with a police helicopter hovering over the crowds above the intersection of Congress Avenue and West 11th Street.

Urged to leave sidewalks to walk into traffic by protest leaders, demonstrators did just that in front of City Hall. As they rendered traffic to a standstill, the megaphone-bearing protester would shout: "Whose streets?" Protesters' loud response: "Our streets!" Video by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Then, the group largely comprised of young people headed to the state Capitol to continue their protest. The video below shows the march toward the Capitol, but readers should be warned marchers expressed some rough language aimed at law enforcement as they traversed the downtown streets.

Video by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

All the while, the Austin Police Department vowed to monitor the march while enforcing the law: "Our officers are working to keep the community safe with compassion, professionalism and respect, as the demonstration continues downtown," police wrote on Twitter. "We appreciate peaceful protest, and will continue providing a safe space for the community to express emotions."

Despite such assurances, much ire was directed at the Austin Police Department after the fatal shooting of an unarmed man last month. Michael Ramos, 42, was fatally shot by police after a caller alerted police he was ingesting drugs in a car while brandishing a firearm. In the end, no gun was found. "How do you spell murderers?" a protest leader screamed into a blare horn. "APD!" protesters rejoined, using the acronym for the local police department in their answer.

Video by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Protesters eschewed sidewalks as they express ire at the Austin Police Department, taking to the streets as they rendered traffic to a standstill. Some motorists expressed solidarity, punching their fists in the air as protesters walked alongside their vehicles.

Even before Floyd's death, Austin residents also had been galvanized in protest against the Austin Police Department over the death of Ramos. The man was fatally shot on April 24 after a standoff with police outside a Southeast Austin apartment complex. A caller had contacted police to report Ramos ingesting drugs with a woman inside a vehicle, claiming the man was brandishing a gun.

Just outside Austin City Hall at 301 W. 2nd Street, protesters stopped traffic as they railed against police brutality before surrending the streets to traffic several minutes later. Photo by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Protesters left tangible evidence of their anger at the Austin Police Department outside Austin City Hall. Graffiti also was sprayed on the exterior walls of the building.

Protesters made their feelings known with artwork placed outside Austin City Hall. Photo by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Although the local protest was largely peaceful, media reports indicate several arrests reportedly took place. Some media outlets reported some of the protesters threw objects such as water bottles at officers as the gathering picked up steam. Anti-police graffiti was seen throughout the protest area by those condemning police overreach, all along the meandering stretch of the march as it headed downtown — some with expletives not suitable for publication.

Across the city where marchers traversed along downtown Austin streets, graffiti describing their anger at police abounded. Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Graffiti was seen across downtown where protesters traversed the streets while decrying police brutality. Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

By 1:30 p.m., Gov. Greg Abbott issued an advisory saying he had dispatched more than 1,500 Texas Department of Public Safety troopers to various Texas cities — namely Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio — experiencing protests to ensure public safety. Some six hours later, Abbott said he had sent National Guard troops to help calm the city.

“Texas and America mourn the senseless loss of George Floyd and the actions that led to his death are reprehensible and should be condemned in the strongest terms possible,” Abbott said in a prepared statement in announcing his sending of Texas DPS troops. "As Texans exercise their 1st Amendment rights, it is imperative that order is maintained and private property is protected.”

To that end, the governor said he had spoken to the various mayors — Steve Adler in Austin, Eric Johnson in Dallas, Sylvester Turner in Houston and Ron Nirenberg in San Antonio — as well as law enforcement officers in the cities where protests were taking place. Abbott said more resources would be provided as needed.

Some six hours later, Abbott announced he had sent an undetermined number of National Guard troops to Texas in helping to quell the protests: "Texans have every right to exercise their first amendment rights, but violence and looting will not be tolerated," the governor said in a terse, single-sentence statement.

No evidence of looting was seen in Austin, and businesses fronting the makeshift protest route were spared — save for graffiti expressing anger on exterior walls. But by then, Texas DPS vehicles that had parked alongside the Governor's Mansion in downtown Austin — a stone's throw from the Texas Capitol — had been damaged by some of those protesting. Someone embedded a traffic cone into the smashed rear window of one car, and protesters took turns scribbling graffiti on the exterior of troopers' unattended vehicles.

Texas Department of Public Safety vehicles parked alongside the Govneror's Mansion were damaged at the height of protests on Saturday. Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Windows on Texas DPS vehicles parked alongside the Governor's Mansion were smashed by protesters on Saturday. Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Texas Department of Public Safety vehicles left unattended were damaged at the height of the protest in Austin on Saturday. Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

In an emailed statement on Friday evening, Adler expressed empathy for protesters' anger. In a prepared statement emailed just before 9 p.m. to Patch on Friday, the mayor wrote: "George Floyd. Ahmed Aubrey. Breonna Taylor. Larry Jackson. David Joseph. Mike Ramos. As the list grows, so do the tears and the fears. Only real accountability will restore trust in those who swear to serve and protect."

The mayor said police should be accountable when incidents like the one seen in Minneapolis occur: "People who kill — including police officers — should be arrested and see due process from inside a courtroom and from the defendant’s table," Adler wrote "These incidents did not begin with cell phone cameras. For our black and brown neighbors, the fear of appearing in one of those scenes is a generations-long ache, resulting in an erosion of trust in the police that makes the entire community less safe. I am committed to do what it takes to make this stop."

Protesters in Austin took out their anger and frustration on an armored-like vehicle from the ultra-conservative media outlet Infowars as the driver attempted to infiltrate the protest. Infowars correspondents are perennial instigators at such gatherings perceived as left-leaning, with correspondents armed with blare horns often dispatched to mock such protests with ultraconservative ideological talking points as counterpoint. This time, protesters weren't having it as seen in a video from KUT showing marchers damaging the vehicle.

Such backlash also was seen at the local protest when a young man taunted the crowd, only to be set upon by several protesters labeling him a Nazi. With a fearful expression, the young man tried escaping those he had taunted. Fellow protesters urged their counterparts not to hurt the young contrarian. "This is a peaceful protest!" one marcher reminded his fellow counterparts. "Let him go!" The young man appeared to have roughed up slighly, but left on his own steam after the crowd around him dispersed as he held a hand up in surrender as he retreated.

Video by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Another skirmish was sparked at 8th and Guadalupe streets as protesters headed toward the Capitol. A young man taking photographs with a camera was chased off by those protesters scurrying into traffic in pursuit. The young man was unharmed as motorists slammed on their brakes to avoid the melee.

Video by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

The local protest is one of several taking place across the U.S. in response to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, killed after a police officer put his knee on his neck against the pavement for close to 10 minutes. In the Texas capital, the sheer size of the protests was such that it shut down Interstate 35 from 6th to 8th streets downtown.

The crowds were large enough to delay city bus service to and from the downtown area. "MetroBus Routes that travel through the downtown area are currently experiencing delays due to protester/police activity," Capital Metro officials wrote in an emailed advisory. "We thank you for your patience."

Yet before Floyd's death, Austin residents also had been galvanized in protest against the Austin Police Department over the death of an unarmed Hispanic man last month. On April 24, 42-year-old Michael Ramos was shot to death during a confrontation with Austin police officers at a Southeast Austin apartment complex. A caller had contacted police to report Ramos ingesting drugs with a woman inside a vehicle, claiming the man was brandishing a gun.

Related story: Austin Officer-Involved Shooting Case Headed To Grand Jury

When police arrived, Ramos put his hands up to reveal he had no gun on his waistband. Still, one of the officers fired a beanbag projectile at the man, causing him to recoil in pain as he slumped back into his car as seen on cell phone footage shared on social media. As Ramos drove away, another officer opened fire with his rifle. Ramos subsequently was found dead in his car. Eighteen days later, Police Chief Brian Manley confirmed no gun was found in the dead man's vehicle or in the vicinity of the deadly confrontation.

Protest organizers announced their plans to demonstrate in Austin on Friday, the day before protests picked up steam. Photo by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Organizers of the dual protest in Austin telegraphed their plans to organize downtown the previous night. Signs affixed to telephone poles, including one seen near the University of Texas at Austin, invited participation in invoking the names of both Floyd and Ramos.

As the demonstration in Austin came to a close in the early evening, the surreal sight of a phalynx of armed officers standing guard on the Capitol ground's perimeters had the markings of something of a standoff. The gates to the Capitol grounds were closed and protesters faced off with the object of their invective outside the gates.

Protesters taunted officcers standing statue-like outside the gates, some egging them on. "Do something!" one young protester told one officer as the two stared each other down. Another addressed several officers standing before them, telling them they would find themselves on the wrong side of history some 40 years hence when historians recorded the events for posterity.

Video by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

Young protesters face down armed police outside the state Capitol. After a day of demonstrating, protesters returning to the Capitol for more rallying were met with locked gates and blocked entry. Photo by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

The Governor's Mansion also was secured by early evening as troopers lined the perimeters of the historic structure to safeguard the edifice that serves as Abbott's government residence.

Texas Department of Public Safety troopers safeguard the Governor's Mansion as protesters descend on downtown Austin to protest police brutality. Photo by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.

A decidedly more quiet protest was spotted next to Lady Bird Lake. As boaters enjoyed the lake amid summer-like temperatures nearing 90, protesters found good-sized rocks to form the letters RIPGF as seen from the Congress Avenue bridge. The letters stand for: "Rest in peace, George Floyd," the man who died face down on pavement after an officer held him down with a knee to his neck for nearly nine mintues.

Adjacent to the tranquil sight of boaters floating on the surface of Lady Bird Lake, a rock formation referencing George Floyd was seen from the Congress Avenue bridge. Photo by Tony Cantú/Patch staff.