8 Officers Who Fatally Shot Rapper On 6th Street Identified

AUSTIN, TEXAS — The Austin Police Department identified the rapper shot dead after eight officers fired at him saying he ran at them with a gun last week along 6th Street. The police officers who fired at the deceased also were named.

The man killed was identified as Aquantis Jaymond Grifin, a 21-year-old black male who family had previously identified on social media. He died in a fusillade of bullets Aug. 17 outside the Terminal 6 bar 302 E. 6th St., in the heart of the popular entertainment corridor in the city's central business district.

Police were called to the scene amid reports of gunshots fired at around 1 a.m., confronting Griffin in an alley behind the bar. It's there where police later said Griffin charged at him while clutching a gun, forcing them to engage their weapons.

Griffin was an up-and-coming rapper from Baton Rouge, La., according to family members who spoke to media outlets. He was billed as a performer at the Terminal 6 club the night he was shot dead by police. According to birth data provided by the police in their press advisory, had just turned 21 ten days prior to his death. He was born on Aug. 7, 1997, according to the police advisory.

Police also released he names of the officers who discharged their weapons the night of the incident. They are:

• Officer Stephen Johnson. He has been with department for four years and currently assigned to the Downtown Area Command.
• Officer Joseph Cast. He has been with the department for four years and currently assigned to the Downtown Area Command.
• Officer Daniel Mathis. He has been with the department for four years and currently assigned to the Downtown Area Command.
• Officer Alberto Martinez. He has been with the department for three years and currently assigned to the Downtown Area Command.
• Officer Wesley DeVries. He has been with the department for six years and currently assigned to the Downtown Area Command.
• Officer Joseph Moran. He has been with the department for one year and currently assigned to Central East patrol.
• Officer Justin Halbach. He has been with the department for three years and currently assigned to the Downtown Area Command.
• Officer Christopher Salacki. He has been with the department for five years and currently assigned to the Downtown Area Command.

A ninth officer, Lewis Holland, deployed his Taser. He has been with the department for four years, currently assigned to the Downtown Area Command.

The officers have been placed on paid administrative leave per standard protocol after each officer-involved shooting. Police said the case will be administratively investigated by APD’s Internal Affairs Unit and monitored by the Office of the Police Monitor. A concurrent investigation will be conducted by APD’s Special Investigations Unit, in conjunction with the Travis County District Attorney’s Office.

From Aug. 17:

AUSTIN, TX — A man shot dead by police early Friday on 6th Street has been identified by family members as a rapper from Baton Rouge, La.

Aquantis Givens, 21, was shot behind the Terminal 6 bar on 6th Street after police responded at 1 a.m. to a report of shots fired. As police arrived, they took positions near the alley behind the bar when a man is said to have run towards them with a gun, police said.

After repeatedly commanding Givens to drop the gun, eight officers opened fire, according to the official account. Givens was transported to the hospital for treatment of his injuries, but he died shortly after his arrival.

Police had been at the bar earlier amid reports of a fight during was billed as a back-to-school rap concert. Family members learned of Givens' death via social media, according to reports. The dead man leaves behind a 3-year-old daughter.

Family members described Givens as an up-and-coming rapper from Louisiana. He had performed at the Austin club before being shot dead by police.

On social media, Terminal 6 operators said they would set out to bolster security following the violent incident:

The incident marked the eighth officer-involved shooting this year and the second this month:

• On Jan. 26, Christopher Eric Giles, of Albuquerque, N.M., was fatally shot by police responding to a Central Austin home invasion.
• On Feb. 19, police fatally shot Thomas Vincent Alvarez, 23, after a Southeast Austin chase that ended at an apartment complex in the 4900 block of Edge Creek Drive, near the Onion Creek Greenbelt.
• On March 7, Victor Ancira, 46, was shot by officers March 7 while holding a pickax in the 4800 block of Tanney Street, near Springdale Road in East Austin.
• On March 12, Kyle Thomas Garcia, 24, was injured after exchanging gunfire with police along the 6200 block of La Naranja Lane.
• On March 25, police fatally shot a man in Southeast Austin said to have fired at officers, wounding one of them.
• On June 7, police fatally shot a woman inside a Southeast Austin home in the 7300 block of South Glenn Street. Police had gotten reports the woman was chasing others with a knife.
• On Aug. 3, officers wounded Craig Anthony Carter, 27, at Spicewood Springs Road and Mesa Drive following a chase through in Northwest Austin. Carter had allegedly assaulted his mother that day, and was said to have fired at police.

Related story: DA Clears Austin Cop In Fatal Officer-Involved Shooting

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