Cops Involved In Austin Shootings Identified

AUSTIN, TX — The Austin Police Department on Thursday identified the four officers who were involved in a pair of shootings at the beginning of 2021, during which three people were shot, including one fatally.

The first incident on Jan. 4 at the Springhill Suites at 12520 N. Interstate service road southbound involved Officer Javier Rodriguez, who fired his weapon, and Kamowa Reynolds, who deployed a stun gun, police said in an advisory. Both have been with the police department for two years, police said.

Dylan Polinski, 23, was shot in the leg after a SWAT standoff at the hotel, according to the police narrative. The man was wanted in connection with an aggravated robbery in Williamson County, police later said. A stun gun had been used in attempts to subdue Polinski before he was shot in the leg, police added.

The next day, 27-year-old Alexander Gonzales was fatally shot by police 2500 Wickersham Lane in what began as a road rage incident, according to previous reports. In a subsequent news conference, Police Chief Brian Manley said an off-duty officer involved in the incident said Gonzales pointed a gun at him while driving.

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Two officers fired their weapons during that incident, police said. Gabriel Gutierrez, a five-year veteran of the force, claimed that Gonzales pointed a gun at him before he fired his own weapon, according to the police department. Gutierrez, who was off duty at the time, said he was cut off by Gonzales. Luis Serrato, who has been with the force two years, fatally shot the driver after he stopped his car, according to the police report.

Gonzales was in the process of accessing the back seat where his 10-month-old son was sitting when he was fatally shot, police said.The child was unhurt, but the driver's girlfriend who had been in the front seat sustained life-threatening injuries, police added.

Police said they would release police video footage of the two incidents prior to a March deadline. Such video typically is released within 60 days of a critical incident, police explained in an advisory. The police department must notify the community within 45 days of such incidents if video footage will not be published, police added.