Sometimes I have difficulty wrestling stories to the ground. Often it is just because I take some time off from writing to enjoy retirement. Other times there are external factors. For instance back in early September 2025 I was working on a story built around crime at iconic Austin locations; places that reflect the spirit, the personality, and the geology of Austin — places that help define the city. It was originally inspired, in large part, by what I considered a poignant and very informative August 21, 2025 report by Nabil Remadna on KXAN. He focused on car break-ins at “popular” Austin locations; places that hundreds, or thousands, of Austinites and visitors frequent daily.
I still haven’t published that story, until now. One reason is that crimes just keep happening at iconic Austin locations and I feel like I have to take the time to include them. For instance as I worked on my initial attempt at the story a police officer was shot, and wounded, by a homeless man while doing a curfew check in Zilker Park. The homeless man also shot his own girlfriend in the back of the head, killing her. Fortunately the police officer survived. The shooter fled and was eventually captured in nearby Barton Hills. However, he was not apprehended by the police. He broke into a home very close to Barton Hills Elementary and was shot, wounded and detained by the homeowner — who then turned him over to the police.
One thing that came to mind there was that the Mayor and City Council like to decry the presence of guns as a major cause of crime (also as a way to blame the legislature), but in this case I would venture to say that it was a good thing that this homeowner had a gun.
Given that my story in progress was about crime at iconic Austin locations, I felt that I needed to add this shooting in Austin’s beloved Zilker Park. I was unable to complete the story before I had to break off and begin my coverage of last year’s Prop Q election. That coverage began on October 8. As I did a series of stories on the Prop Q election, crimes at iconic Austin locations multiplied. That pattern continued as I published stories on other topics and then took a break from publishing.
Finally, last week I got back on that story. I wrote a bulleted list of such crimes and added some discussion and analysis of the topic. I planned to complete and publish it this week. But, after the events of Saturday July 11, I had to add still another crime. One could argue that this incident was only iconic location-adjacent, but in any case it was very serious. Let’s take a look.
A Very Unpleasant Saturday Morning in Central Austin
A group of people who run on the hike and bike trail together were walking south on the sidewalk along North Lamar between the West Third Street overpass and Lady Bird Lake. They were on the west side of Lamar and — based on videos released by the Austin Police Department (APD) — were pretty far down the hill. They were evidently heading to the hike and bike trail around the lake. A man then sped by on a scooter. A woman in the group told him he should slow down. This angered the man on the scooter. (By the way the scooter does not appear to be one of the rental ones seen around town.)
As Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis explained at a July 13 press conference, the situation then “escalated into a verbal argument” and “the suspect then proceeded to strike the woman, pulled out a handgun and pointed it at multiple people and threatened to shoot them, before fleeing.”
Davis said the first 911 calls came in at 8:13 AM and police officers arrived within two minutes. Davis released two of those 911 calls, which provide at least some indication of a horrifying sudden change to the runners’ plans for a peaceful Saturday morning run along the river.
The first 911 call begins with a woman’s voice saying, “I’m hiding from someone with a gun.”
The 911 operator asks, “Where?”
“I’m on Lamar. . . between W. 5th and where the YMCA is. He had a gun. . . He’s on a scooter. Short, caucasian man, brown hair, wearing all black. He has a backpack. He’s going after runners.”
Operator: “Is he pointing the gun at somebody?”
Caller: “Yes, at runners, on the street. . .”
Operator: “Was there an argument or anything?”
Caller: “There was an argument. He was on a scooter going fast down the sidewalk and one of our runners told him to slow down, and so he turns back around and ___ (unintelligible, possibly “confronted”) her. And, then he slapped her. And then he took out the gun.”
Map released by APD illustrating the site of the original incident and where the suspect was shot by police, near the YMCA.
The Second Call
APD released a second 911 call which came in from near Whole Foods, which is on Lamar between West 5th and 6th. That caller was also a woman and the call took place as she and other people — who could be heard in the background — were moving from place to place, trying to shake the man on the scooter.
Caller 2: “There’s a man with a gun.”
Operator: “What intersection are you at?”
Caller 2: “We’re by the Whole Foods downtown. He’s on a black scooter with a green backpack. .. ”
As the operator begins another question the caller interjects, with a resigned sigh, “He’s coming back.”
The caller then says, with a slight pause between each sentence: “He has a green back pack. He slapped one of us. We’re a run group. He’s a white man with black hair. (slightly longer silence ) We’re just running away.”
Operator: “Did he point the gun at you or did he (just) show you he had it?
Caller: “Sorry, give me one second,” the caller answers, breathing hard and evidently running.
Operator: “Mam,
Caller: “Yeah.”
Operator: Did he point the gun at you”
(Caller interrupts) “He’s coming back. We’re going to West Elm,” a furniture store across Lamar from Whole Foods, on the southwest corner of Fifth and Lamar.” She goes quiet briefly, then, as if to make sure the operator understood her, “We’re going into West Elm.” This is followed by the sounds of continuing to flee.
Operator: “Mam, can you hear me.”
Caller: “Yes, I can hear you.”
Operator: “Did he point the gun at you, yes or no?”
Caller: “Yes, he did.” She then adds, “West Elm is closed. He’s following us.”
The operator then asks the caller to repeat the description, which she does.
Then the caller says, “He’s going down by Hold Out.” She then says, louder seemingly to people around her, “He’s looping around.” At this point the caller is breathing harder, apparently from running and trying to talk on the phone at the same time, while fleeing an armed and clearly mentally disturbed person riding on a scooter.
The caller then answers in more detail the question about whether the man pointed the gun at her: “Yes, he pointed the gun at us. He threatened to shoot us with the gun. He called us faggots.” She later adds, “He assaulted one of my run club leads. He slapped her in the face.”
The operator then asks the caller if she knows where the man is now. She says no.
Then the caller says the police have arrived and the call ends when she goes to meet them.
At the YMCA
It was around this time that the suspect disappeared for a little over two hours. The caller’s mention that the assailant was “going down by Hold Out,” combined with soon afterward saying she no longer knew where he was, likely offers a clue into the scooter riders’ disappearance. By the way, the caller really knew her way around the area and knew where businesses were. “The Hold Out” refers to Hold Out Brewing which is located in a somewhat isolated area on W. 4th, facing the railroad tracks. It is very possible that, upon hearing the police sirens and perhaps seeing police cars arriving, he fled into this area. Chief Davis said “we think he was hunkered down somewhere, hiding from officers.”
From the area around the Hold Out it is less than half a mile to the YMCA where police located the suspect shortly after 11 AM. He could have easily found a back route to the YMCA, across the tracks and through undeveloped land. In any case a police body camera shows officers driving up to the YMCA. They get out of their car and soon locate the suspect. He was riding his scooter very near a group of people who were working out under the canopy over the driveway at the Y.
During the period that he was hiding out the police somehow learned that his name was Emmanuel Diaz, because they called him Emmanuel when they arrived at the YMCA. That appears to be different, however, than what Chief Davis said at her press conference. In describing the officers’ encounter with Diaz at the YMCA, Davis said that police “later learned” that his name was Emmanuel Diaz. The officers, however, clearly called him “Emmanuel” and ordered him to get off the scooter. He refused but then dropped the scooter and took off running. Two police officers pursued him, telling him to drop his gun and surrender. Diaz refused and kept running. Quickly he either leaped or fell to the ground.
On the body camera footage it is clear that he is pointing a gun toward the officers. They opened fire. His arm fell to the ground and he was still. The officers then very cautiously approached him, telling him not to move. The video ends.
Davis said the officers tried to provide aid, but the suspect died at the scene. She also said that it is “unfortunate that it ended this way,” but made clear that “in my estimation these officers acted very bravely.” The Chief also reported that all three of Diaz’s weapons were loaded and had a bullet in the chamber, with additional ammunition as well.
Chief Davis Takes Questions from the Media
After her presentation Davis took questions from reporters (the Austin Independent was not in attendance). One reporter asked about Diaz’s “housing status” and whether he was “homeless.”
Davis replied, “As far as his housing status, we do not know that. We know that he had a PO Box.” (The Austin Independent submitted written questions to APD asking if Diaz’s housing status had been determined; and another question seeking to determine how and when APD learned his name. APD PIO replied, “We forwarded your questions to the investigative unit and they let us know that due to the open and ongoing investigation, they are not able to release additional information at this time.”)
Another reporter asked, “Would you consider this area to be a crime hot spot” or an area that APD “is looking at more?”
Davis quickly replied: “No, this is a very safe area. I mean this is a location that is one of the things that makes Austin great. Right. It is an area where everyone comes out. They run. They walk, all of those things. And again that’s what makes Austin special. This was obviously a seriously disturbed person, and it’s unfortunate that it ended this way. But, that area is very safe.”
What Does Safe Mean?
I respect Chief Davis and it seems like a good thing for Austin that she is here. This particular comment, however, at the very least begs the question of exactly what “safe” means in today’s Austin. Davis was likely feeling a need to reassure the public that the area is safe, and it largely is. And isolated incidents can happen in normally safe areas. But, at the same time there have been a number of violent incidents in the downtown area, with several of them involving apparently mentally disturbed people. Let’s take a quick, cursory look.
This is a very safe area. I mean this is a location that is one of the things that makes Austin great.
Austin police chief lisa davis
September 10, 2025 – Wounding of police officer in Zilker during curfew check.
October 20, 2025 – Machete fight near Austin City Hall and hike and bike trail.
October 25, 2025 – Shooting in a bathroom at Austin’s beautiful, wonderfully planned, state of the art downtown library. A person visiting the library from Waco was shot when he entered a rest room. According to a report from Fox7, “He says he’s temporarily lost the use of his right hand and now walks with a limp due to the bullet’s travel path.” The victim was also quoted, “it shattered my knuckle and my middle finger, it also traveled through my thigh and out my thigh.”
March 11, 2026 – Less than five months later there was another tragedy at the downtown library. A man sitting quietly at a computer was attacked by a person who “elbowed and kicked the man before stomping repeatedly on his head.” The victim survived but was hospitalized with a “life-altering brain injury.” Police Chief Davis happened to be at the library and arrested the suspect.
April 26, 2026 – Six people injured in a shooting outside Sam’s BBQ, in a dispute between two men over $200.
These are just a few examples of violent and often random crime at iconic locations in Austin. The list does not include the March 1 terrorist attack at the very popular Buford’s bar on West 6th Street downtown, a few blocks from last Saturday’s incident. Nor does it include stabbings on Capital Metro buses, one of them fatal. And, it does not include the brutal January 2024 machete attack on a young man walking peacefully along the trail at Auditorium Shores; or to violent events that preceded that. It seems that more public discussion is needed. We will have more to report in future installments. For instance how much does the attitude of City Council Members toward crime contribute to the situation.
Chief Davis Has to Navigate Through Council Ideology
Chief Davis for instance may feel a need to adhere as much as she can to the views of the Council’s elected leaders/policy makers. For instance here’s Mayor Pro Tem Chito Vela at a summer 2024 public safety debate hosted by CBS Austin. He is replying to a citizen who commented that downtown is unsafe and that she won’t let her daughter go there.
Vela: “I’m downtown at City Hall and around City Hall every day, and I hear this kind of ‘oh, downtown is a scary place.’ It’s not. It’s a completely normal place. It’s largely safe. There’s literally tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people, that come and go from downtown every day. The idea that it’s some kind of hellscape is just a fantasy that people really just need to shed.”
Vela went on to say “my heart goes (out) to anyone who is a victim of crime, but the reality is that people come and go from downtown everyday.” He then reiterated, “So, this whole idea that Austin is some kind of criminal hellscape is just right wing fantasy material. And it just really needs to stop.”
There’s a lot to unpack there, but we won’t do that today. But, the Council supermajority’s attitude toward violent crime, and the ideology from which that attitude emanates, deserves more scrutiny. The same is true for the roles of the District Attorney and County Attorney, ideological brethren to the Council supermajority. So stay tuned.
Extra: Responses Arise to Decline of Local Media Coverage
Folks, I realize that there are multiple other issues going on in Austin that I have not covered here. Also, as we have discussed before, there has for years now been an ongoing decline in the amount of time, space and attention that the local media devotes to local issues. There has been at least one bright spot recently with the revival and enhancement of local coverage from the Austin American-Statesman. Also, in my view, the local TV media can be counted on to at least cover major crimes in an informative way and sometimes to put these stories into a broader context, like with stories about the handling of crime by the District Attorney and County Attorney.
But, a void still remains. And, there have been organically developing alternatives to the decline of local coverage, often with individual citizens taking matters into their own hands. I want to mention just a few of those here. We have talked before about the Austin Free Press, which continues to pump out informative stories.
Then there’s Jen Robichaux, who became active on local issues during last year’s Prop Q campaign. Robichaux posts mainly on X and sometimes speaks at City Council. She provides a ton of information, with very strong and succinct analysis. She also encourages other people to get involved, operating under the slogan “Rise Up Austin.” Robichaux sometimes holds meet-ups at public locations like brew pubs or coffee houses. She has begun to succeed at getting more people interested in local government and shows no signs of letting up.
Robichaux keeps a running archive of locals news articles as well as a calendar of local events.
Meanwhile, Barbara Cilley continues her return to Austin politics and governance with a forum she is developing on “Community Policing, Navigation Center and Crime.” The Navigation Center is a homeless services center proposed near Oltorf and IH 35, not far from Travis High. The meeting is sponsored by South River City Citizens. It is August 18th at 7:00 PM at the Wildflower Church, 1314 East Oltorf. The title speaks for itself and expect Cilley to come very prepared and well informed. She will be joined by Constable Precinct 3 Stacy Suits as a co-presenter.
Then there’s the Austin Independent School District (AISD). I generally find local coverage of AISD woefully inadequate for the incredibly disastrous situation in which the District finds itself; although the Statesman does periodically contribute some good articles. If you want thorough and well informed reporting and analysis on that topic I strongly recommend following the reporting of former AISD trustee Kendall Pace on Substack. Her latest two articles cover reading and math results in the District.
We will close with my long time friend Linda Lewis’s return to Austin. Lewis is a veteran player in both Austin politics and media. Among other things, she was a founder of KAZI radio — which is now 44 years old. Lewis recently moved back to her beloved Austin after a few decades in her native town of Waco. She’s back on KAZI and has been co-hosting ATX Now in Color, a show originally created by former KAZI News Director Billy Carr and host of the show Alberta Phillips. Phillips currently serves as Executive Director and Editor in Chief of the Austin Free Press. Prior to that she was a longtime Austin American-Statesman reporter and columnist.
Phillips also teaches journalism at Huston-Tillotson University on Tuesdays, so Lewis has hosted most of the shows this year.
Both the show and the Austin Free Press utilize investigative journalism done by the Huston-Tillotson students. This is a good thing for the radio station, the Austin Free Press and the students.
I want to thank Linda and Alberta for having me on the show several times to participate in discussions on local issues. Tune in at 88.7 FM or through the KAZI website, Tuesdays at noon.
- Editor’s Note: This story was amended to correct the spelling of Nabil Remadna’s last name and to add that Constable Precinct 3 Stacy Suits will be a co-presenter with Barbara Cilley.
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