APD shoot and kill woman in South Austin; suspect and officers identified
The Austin Police Department have identified the suspect and officers involved in Sunday's fatal shooting in South Austin.
APD said the suspect was Micah Dsheigh Jester, 26, and the officers involved were Deborah Lindeman, a mental health officer, and Richard Smith.
Police said the gun Jester threatened officers with prior to the shooting was a replica semi-automatic BB gun. Officers Lindeman and Smith have been put on paid-administrative leave.
The incident is being investigated by APD's Internal Affairs and Special Investigations Units, Office of the Police Monitor, and the Travis County District Attorney's Office. A Travis County Grand Jury will also review this incident.
A mental health call to the Club at Summer Valley Apartments at 744 W. William Cannon took a deadly turn early Sunday morning.
"A white female, around 26 years old, came out of the breezeway of apartment building 14. She had a weapon in her hands, she extended the weapon towards the officers and said 'shoot me, shoot me, kill me,'" Assistant Chief Troy Gay, of the Austin Police Department, said.
Austin police say the victim's husband called 911 around 3:45 AM telling operators his wife was in distress, acting erratic, and needed help. APD said officers tried to talk the suspect down but she ignored their commands and approached them with the gun.
"Both officers shot at the female. She then went down." Ast. Chief Gay said, "The female continued to make comments such as 'kill me' while on the ground."
Police said the suspect pointed the gun at officers again while on the ground. That's when police shot the suspect a second time. She was taken to St. David's South Hospital where she died just before 5 AM.
Brittney Muller said she lives in a nearby building and hopes the news of another officer-involved shooting does not lead to more community distrust towards police.
"I mean they are only doing there job. What are you suppose to do when someone points a gun at you? Are you just suppose to run away or do you react?" Muller said, "That's the sad part is that those police officers are going to have a lot to deal with. That's it, more than anything. She wanted it but they are the ones who are responsible."
APD have not identified the suspect or the two officers involved in the shooting but said the officers involved have each been in the department for three years. Police said they do have audio recordings of the incident but were unable to get video footage because dashcam cameras were too far away from the scene.