Sixth Street officer-involved shooting: Injured woman files lawsuit

AUSTIN, Texas - A woman injured in a 2023 officer-involved shooting at a Sixth Street bar has filed a lawsuit.

The suit says that the woman suffered permanent blindness in her eye as a result of the shooting.

What they're saying:

The lawsuit names the city of Austin, the Austin Police Department, and ten unnamed officers.

The lawsuit is seeking damages for violations of the woman's constitutional rights under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments and for injuries she sustained when defendants "used excessive and unreasonable force in a crowded public area".

The suit is seeking compensatory, punitive and exemplary damages, as well as reasonable attorneys' fees and costs.

The suit says that the woman was standing on the sidewalk outside the Soho Lounge waiting to get in when the incident happened.

"Despite the presence of innocent bystanders in the immediate vicinity, including Plaintiff, the Defendant Officers failed to secure the area or take reasonable steps to protect bystanders before confronting the individual," the suit reads. "The situation escalated to a point where the Defendant Officers discharged their weapons by firing at the would-be customer. Without regard for the safety of innocent bystanders, including Plaintiff, the Defendant Officers opened fire in the crowded area."

The woman was struck in the right eye with a bullet, causing permanent blindness.

The suit also names the Soho Lounge as a defendant, saying "[its] actions in calling police based on an unfounded assumption about a customer possessing a weapon, without reasonable basis, contributed to the escalation."

Lawsuit alleges pattern of constitutional violations by APD

Dig deeper:

The suit claims that the December 2023 shooting was not an isolated incident, but instead a "pattern of excessive force and constitutional violations by APD officers that demonstrates the City's deliberate indifference to citizens' constitutional rights."

The suit outlines four deadly officer-involved shootings: Jason Roque in 2017, Landon Nobles in 2017, Dr. Mauris DeSilva in 2019 and Mike Ramos in 2020.

The suit says these incidents show a pattern of:

• Using deadly force without sufficient justification or immediate threat
• Failing to allow subjects reasonable time to comply with commands
• Shooting individuals who are complying with police commands or pose no threat
• Inadequate de-escalation training and implementation
• Disproportionate use of force against minorities and individuals in mental health crisis
• Repeated involvement of the same officers (such as Officer Christopher Taylor) in multiple fatal shootings

The city has also paid out at least $5.55 million in settlements in the Roque and Nobles cases, according to the suit. The girlfriend of Mike Ramos also filed suit against the city in 2022 for over $1 million. 

CLEAT says officers acted properly

The other side:

"These officers were confronted with a lethal threat, somebody who was threatening to seriously hurt or kill them, and they defended themselves in accordance with everything that they had been taught," said Robert Leonard, Executive Director, Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas (CLEAT).

Leonard says the officers acted properly and that it was Hernandez who escalated the encounter, not police.

"When he pointed the weapon at the officers, the officers then were within their legal right and within their training to protect themselves and to protect their own lives. It is regrettable that there were people around, but it's Mr. Hernandez who caused all of this, not the officers," said Leonard.

"The Austin Police Department investigated, and they found that the officers did not commit any violations of policy or procedure, and they did not receive any discipline as a result of the shooting," added Leonard. 

What happened on December 16, 2023?

The backstory:

On December 16, 2023, just before midnight, uniformed officers assigned to the 6th Street patrol area were approached by a person who told them someone was attempting to enter a bar with a gun, a violation of Texas Penal Code section 46.03, Places Weapons Prohibited.

Officers arrived at the Soho Lounge and Gnar Bar and as they approached the entrance, an employee of the bar denied entry to the male suspect, who was later identified as 29-year-old Trei Hernandez. 

Hernandez moved away from the doorway to an adjacent window. 

The bar employee told officers that Hernandez did not want to be searched before entering the bar. The bar employee then told officers, "He can’t get in. He’s got a weapon on him."

"He put his hand in his pocket, there was a bulge in his pocket," officers said in footage released by APD after the shooting.

As officers approach Hernandez, footage shows him pulling out his gun. Surveillance video shows Hernandez firing his gun toward officers and bystanders.

"Drop the gun, drop the gun," officers yell at Hernandez in the video.

The three officers then fired their Department-approved firearms at Hernandez.

Hernandez, after suffering multiple gunshot wounds, was pronounced dead at the scene just after midnight.

Three bystanders were injured and taken to the hospital.

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