Cop Shoots Knife-Wielding Man After North Austin Stabbing

NORTH AUSTIN, TX — One person was stabbed in North Austin on Sunday morning and the head of the state's largest police union said a knife-wielding man was later shot when he refused commands to drop the weapon.

The incident happened around 10:30 a.m. Sunday on the 4000 block of Greenhill Place, Lt. Dustin Lee told Patch. Police initially responded to a report of a disturbance.

Charley Wilkison, the head of the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas said in a tweet Sunday that the police officer shot a man who refused to drop a knife and advanced toward the officer in a "threatening manner."

Both the person who was stabbed and the man who was shot were rushed to a hospital, police said. Lee said they were expected to survive.

In a subsequent press conference, Austin Police Department Police Chief Brian Manley said the officer who fired his weapon was wearing a body camera, footage from which the chief has examined. He described the scene, saying the suspect exited a building from the front door while slowly advancing toward the responding officer without speaking but refusing to comply to officer's commands to drop his weapon.

The officer in the shooting, an eight-year veteran of the police department, has been placed on administrative duty per standard protocol during officer-involved shootings. The officer sustained no injuries as a result of the incident.

Both the suspect and victim are now hospitalized for treatment of their injuries, Manley said. The former, a 59-year-old white male is in serious but stable condition while the victim, a 69-year-old man, was in critical but stable condition, Manley said.

The incident is the second time officer-involved shooting in as many days in Austin. In the early morning of Friday, Dec. 15, police fired on another stabbing suspect in Central Austin after he refused to comply to an officer's commands to drop his weapon. In that Central Austin incident, the female victim was mortally wounded despite medics' efforts to save her.

Asked about the near succession between the two incidents, Manley said there is "no rhyme or reason" to the frequency, noting police had gone several months without having to fire on someone prior to this. He speculated the holiday season may be a contributing factor with those suffering from depression and other mental issues, although he was quick to note it's unclear if such conditions played a role in either incident.

OIS, Austin PD, disturbance, 1 stab victim,man w/knife refused order 2 drop weapon,continued 2 advance/threatening manner, officer shot assailant,CLEAT Staff Attys Arianna Smith,Carol Gustin on scene.Officer ok!77th CLEAT OIS of 2017, 2nd today. @CLEAT @NAPOpolice @cjones_cleat
— Charley Wilkison (@charleywilkison) December 17, 2017

This is a developing story. Hit refresh for updates.

Tony Cantú contributed to this report

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