AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- A day-long SWAT standoff in southwest Austin that began after a visit from Austin's code enforcement department ended in gunfire a burned out home, and the death of a man after a shootout with police.
Austin Police Chief Joseph Chacon said the incident began just after 9 a.m. Wednesday morning, when members of the Austin Code Department and Austin Police officers attempted to serve a warrant at a home in the 10600 block of Pinkney Lane in the Circle C area. Code officers were responding to complaints of high weeds and grass at the property, and intended to conduct lawn maintenance.
About an hour later, the man began firing at the Code Department staffers from inside the home. No one was seriously injured, though one inspector suffered a minor shoulder injury while taking cover.
SWAT personnel responded to the scene, working to de-escalate the situation and convince the resident to come out peacefully. Just after 3:15 p.m., officers began to move towards the back of the residence, when the man began firing his weapon again. A robot was also used to breach the front door, which observed a fire that had been started inside the home, Chacon said.
That fire quickly spread throughout the home. Officers continued to encourage the man to come out of the house for the next 20 minutes, at which point they believed he may have succumbed to flames and smoke from the fire. At that point, Austin Fire crews began to fight the blaze.
At 3:39 p.m., Chacon said the man opened the garage door with "weapons in hand," prompting a SWAT officer to shoot and hit the man.
After rendering medical aid, the man was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.
Chacon said the response involved multiple agencies, including Austin Fire, Travis County SWAT, the Travis County Constables, and Austin Code Enforcement.
The SWAT officer is an 8-year veteran of the department, Chacon said. He'll be placed on administrative duty while two investigations into the incident are ongoing, which is standard protocol following any officer-involved shooting.
