Downtown Austin shooting suspect killed during pursuit with police

Officer-involved shooting in downtown Austin, 1 man with a gun killed

Three officers are on paid administrative leave after a shooting. FOX 7 Austin's Shannon Ryan has details.

AUSTIN, Texas - The Austin Police Department (APD) is investigating a deadly officer-involved shooting in Downtown Austin.

Police said on Jan. 15, around 11:33 p.m., officers received multiple calls regarding a man with a gun and shots fired in the downtown area. The callers provided different locations in and around W. 6th Street.

It was the night before a federal holiday, so the Downtown Entertainment District was quite busy, even though it was a Sunday night.

APD provided time stamps of the events that happened leading up to the officer-involved shooting:

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Austin police fatally shoot Downtown Austin shooting suspect

Austin police shot a shooting suspect during a foot pursuit Sunday night in the Downtown Entertainment District. The suspect was taken to the hospital where he died.

At 11:34 p.m., a 9-1-1 call was received with multiple people on the phone line. A woman on the call said a person was shooting in the area of Lavaca Street and 5th Street. A man on the same 9-1-1 call said someone was shot.

At 11:36 p.m., another 9-1-1 caller described a chaotic scene with people running in the 300 block of W. 6th Street. Officers responded to the area as the information was provided by Austin 9-1-1 communications.

At 11:35 p.m., the first officers arrived on the scene and began searching for the man with a gun. The 9-1-1 operators got information from the 9-1-1 callers and provided officers with a suspect description over the police radio. Officers continued searching the area as they gathered information about the suspect's description and last known direction of travel. The suspect was described as a Black man, thin build, 6'1" to 6'2", with "afro style hair," and wearing all dark clothing.

At around 11:38 p.m., a male shooting victim was located, and he began speaking with officers. The victim had a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. Officers provided medical aid to the victim as Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services (ATCEMS) was called to the scene. The male victim was transported to a local hospital by ATCEMS, where he was treated and discharged.

Officers continued searching the area for the suspect involved in the shooting.

At around 11:43 p.m., three APD officers riding in an APD utility vehicle in the area saw a male, later identified as 30-year-old Anthony Marquis Franklin, who matched the description of the shooter.

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As the officers began to approach and call out to Franklin, they saw him with a gun. The officers yelled out "gun" to one another. The officers then gave Franklin several commands to drop the gun.

Franklin did not comply with the officers' orders and began to run westbound on W. 6th Street and then northbound on Colorado Street. One of the officers jumped out of the utility vehicle and began to run after Franklin on foot. The other two officers continued to follow in the utility vehicle. The officers verbally commanded Franklin to drop the gun and show his hands, however, Franklin again did not comply with the officers' commands.

As the pursuit of Franklin approached 601 Colorado Street, he ran onto the porch of a building. An unknown male was also on the porch and, at this point in the investigation, is not believed to be involved in this incident. The unknown male quickly jumped off the porch with his hands up and ran away from the scene.

The officers continued to order Franklin to show his hands. Franklin also jumped off the porch and fell to the ground. Within seconds, all three officers fired their department-issued firearms, striking him.

Franklin threw the gun toward a vehicle parked on the street near him. The gun landed directly in front of Franklin. The officers told Franklin, "do not move," and he complied with those commands. Once officers gained compliance from Franklin, the officers approached him even though the gun was still close to him.

The officers secured Franklin and searched him for additional weapons. The officers immediately began life-saving measures.

Officers requested medical assistance to the scene. Franklin was transported to a local hospital by ATCEMS with serious injuries, and later died from his injuries.

No other civilians or officers sustained physical injuries.

Police said a firearm was located on the ground near Franklin.

The incident was captured on three officers' body-worn cameras. Three APD officers discharged their department-approved firearms. Per APD protocol, the officers have been placed on administrative leave.

One officer has seven years and nine months of service, another has two years of service with the Department, and the third officer has 11 months of service with the Department.

APD will conduct two concurrent investigations into this incident: a criminal investigation conducted by the APD Special Investigations Unit in conjunction with the Travis County District Attorney's Office and an administrative investigation conducted by the APD Internal Affairs Unit, with oversight from the Office of Police Oversight.

Anyone with any information should contact the Austin Police Department at 512-974-TIPS. You may submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestoppers.org or calling 512-472-8477.