Shooting closes down 7 Austin schools

[nils]

Please, let us carry EVERYWHERE!!!!!!

Austin PD seeks shooting suspects; 7 schools closed
By JANET ELLIOTT Austin Bureau
Nov. 6, 2008, 11:27AM
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AUSTIN — A man armed with an assault rifle and wearing body armor was shot and killed by a rookie police officer in an early-morning shootout on this city's east side.

The shooting came after an attack that left two other men wounded and spurred Austin school district officials to call off classes at seven campuses in that area for the day.

Police Chief Art Acevedo praised the young officer as a hero. The dead suspect is believed to have been involved in the earlier shooting that left two people wounded at a nearby residence.

The fatal shooting occurred after a chase in which a pickup truck that was seen leaving the residence crashed into a closed hamburger stand while fleeing police.

Five men ran away from the truck, one of them firing an AK-47 at police, Acevedo said.

The rookie officer, whose name has not been disclosed, returned fire, killing the man, the chief said.

"What we really are pleased with is the fact that our officers responded to this very critical scene,"Acevedo said. "As a result of the heroic efforts by one of our young cops — he's only been around since January, he's a brand-new police officer — the only loss of life was that of the suspect that was out there trying to cause mayhem in our community."

Another suspect was taken into custody, and police are questioning a second "person of interest," Acevedo said.

Nearby Reagan High School and six other schools are closed until tomorrow, the chief said, as a precaution while police pursue two and possibly three other suspects.

No students or staff members had arrived at the schools before the closures were announced.

The initial call of shots being fired at the residence came in at 3:58 a.m. Arriving officers heard gunshots, Acevedo said, and chased the fleeing pickup.

The two men who were shot at the residence are in stable condition at a hospital, the chief said.

Officers blocked off a half-mile radius and a SWAT team is looking for the additional men, who are believed to be armed and dangerous.

Police have not released the names of any of the people involved in the incidents.

A cashier at a Randalls store where police and news media had taken over much of the parking lot said she lives in the neighborhood and had not heard of previous problems.

She was shocked to hear that an officer had been involved in the deadly exchange of gunfire.

"I feel sorry for the officer," said the woman, who wouldn't give her name because of company policy.

janet.elliott@chron.com

[Mike1951]

Unfortunately, instead of this helping our cause for carry at schools, it will be used as justification for the renewed AWB.

[FlynJay]

I hope the guy had a felony or something so that he couldn't leagly own the gun in the first place.

[dave_in_austin]

To top it all off, one of the local radio stations (KLBJ AM) reported this morning that the gun used was a machine gun. They led the listener to think that the police chief had characterized the firearm this way, but who really knows if those were the chief's words or the reporter's words. Either way, it will feed the AWB fires.

[bdickens]

Perfect timing,too. Don'tya think?

[smyrna]

A cashier at a Randalls store where police and news media had taken over much of the parking lot said she lives in the neighborhood and had not heard of previous problems.

She was shocked to hear that an officer had been involved in the deadly exchange of gunfire.

"I feel sorry for the officer," said the woman, who wouldn't give her name because of company policy.

janet.elliott@chron.com

Huh?

[KD5NRH]

She was shocked to hear that an officer had been involved in the deadly exchange of gunfire.

Huh?

It means she was amazed to hear that a cop actually hit something.

[Elvis]

At least someone in the public has an inkling of the trama the Officer been subjected to to protect the citizens of Austin.

[bryang]

She was shocked to hear that an officer had been involved in the deadly exchange of gunfire.

Huh?

It means she was amazed to hear that a cop actually hit something.

He must have been a good shot, too...the guy was wearing body armor and on the run!

-geo