Man Killed In N. Austin Officer-Involved-Shooting IDed (Updated)

AUSTIN, TX — Law enforcement officials on Friday identified the man shot dead in a confrontation with police as well as the two officers who fired upon the man.

The incident along the 5200 block of North Capital of Texas Highway around 5:10 p.m. began as a domestic disturbance involving a married couple. The woman managed to get out of the vehicle before the man rammed into the vehicle of a passerby who had tried helping her.

The man attempted to subdue the woman before fleeing into thick wooded area near the Pennybacker Bridge. In a subsequent press conference, Police Chief Brian Manley said the man claimed he had a gun and would shoot police before the officers opened fire and killed him.

The dead suspect was identified as Carlos Manuel Dodero, 45. The two officers who fired their weapons are Hugh Butler and William Bertelson, assigned to the K-9 unit and Central West patrol, respectively. Both officers have been placed on paid administrative leave as is the protocol after officer-involved shootings in Austin.

In their update, police didn't say whether a weapon the man claimed to have been holding had been recovered. At his press conference, Manley conceded it was too dark for the officers to see a weapon, adding that it wasn't immediately found at the scene.

Officials said the case will be administratively investigated by APD’s Internal Affairs Unit and monitored by the Office of the Police Oversight. A concurrent investigation will be conducted by APD’s Special Investigations Unit, in conjunction with the Travis County District Attorney’s Office.

From April 28:

AUSTIN, TX — Police fatally shot a suspect near the Pennybacker Bridge on Sunday evening who fled after a domestic disturbance with his wife that caused a car wreck.

Police responded to the 5200 block of North Capital of Texas Highway around 5:10 p.m. amid an initial report of a stabbing. Upon arrival, a female victim was found with injuries consistent with having been dragged along the asphalt as well as an injured arm.

In a subsequent press briefing, Police Chief Brian Manley said the suspect was driving the wrong way — traveling northbound on the southbound lanes of Loop 360 after turning the car around — during an argument with his wife, hitting another car in the process. The female victim had gotten out of the car during the argument before getting inside another vehicle from a passerby the man is said to have run into head-on.

At one point in seen on video, the man is then seen picking up the woman from the ground to take her off to the side when he goes out of frame.

The man then fled the scene on foot, as police received reports the injured woman may have been stabbed, Manley said. Police searched a wooded area for the suspect, at one point hearing from a relative the man had texted his stepdaughter to alert her mother was fine but he would be killed by officers that night, the chief told reporters.

That grim prediction ultimately would come to pass. By 6:21 p.m., Manley said, officers at the scene reported shots fired at the scene during the confrontation with the suspect. By 6:35 p.m., the chief added, the suspect began receiving first aid before being taken to the hospital for injuries sustained during the confrontation by police.

Life-saving efforts proved futile, as the man died upon his arrival to a local hospital. The woman involved sustained serious injuries that were nonetheless deemed not to be life-threatening, Manley added.

Manley said a police canine tracked the suspect in the woods before the man was commanded to drop his weapon. The chief acknowledged is was difficult to see the suspect given the thick brush in the wooded area, but added that the man told police numerous times he had a gun while threatening to shoot at the officers. Police body cameras show the moment the officers opened fire on the victim, Manley said.

A KXAN viewer shared cell phone footage recording the moment the suspect crashed into a car and grabbed his wife, preventing her from entering another passerby's vehicle to escape from him:

The suspect who died in the confrontation with police was described only as a 45-year-old Hispanic male, while his wife was described as a 44-year-old Hispanic female. The unidentified officers involved in the shooting are a patrol officer who has been with the force for years and another who works in the canine unit who's been on the job for seven years who fired a handgun and a rifle in shooting the suspect dead. Both will be placed on administrative duty per protocol after each officer-involved shooting.

At the press briefing, Manley said the weapon the man was said to have had on him had not been located. Darkness had fallen by the time police secured the scene, making a search for a possible weapon more challenging in the thick brush amid the wooded area, Manley said. As a result of the ongoing investigation, he said the area will be closed overnight to accommodate a police investigation.

This is a developing story that Patch will update once more details are known.