USA TODAY International Edition
3 dead in Austin shooting spree
An ex- sheriff ’ s detective is named as a suspect
AUSTIN – Three people were dead at the scene of a shooting Sunday in Austin, and a manhunt was underway for the killer, authorities said.
Authorities said the shooting was reported an apartment complex. Police and SWAT teams swarmed a parking lot of a nearby shopping complex.
“Obviously this is a tragedy. We have people who have lost their lives here,” Interim Police Chief Joe Chacon said. “We’ll do our best … to get this person in custody.”
Chacon said the shooting appeared to stem from a domestic dispute. He identified the suspect as Stephen Nicholas Broderick, 41. Preliminary information indicated that Broderick knew the victims, two women and a man, and that the shooting was targeted. A child was involved, Chacon said, but was safe in police custody.
Records show Broderick, a former Travis County sheriff ’ s detective, is facing charges of sexual assault of a child. He was booked in June and spent 16 days in jail before posting bail, which was set at $ 50,000.
Broderick, a property crimes detective, resigned after his arrest, according to Travis County sheriff ’ s spokeswoman Kristen Dark. Court and public records show that Broderick’s wife filed for a protective order and divorce shortly after his arrest.
Austin Mayor Steve Adler said the shooting took place at Arboretum Oaks Apartments, which is described on the website as a “luxury apartment community.”
The Austin- Travis County EMS, which responded to the shooting, described an an “active attack/ shooter incident.” EMS said on Twitter that there were no reports of other injuries, and Chacon later said the shooting was no longer considered an activeshooter situation.
Josh Katzowitz, who was shopping nearby, said police and ambulances came “pouring in” to the area. He didn’t hear any shooting. “The cops had their guns out,” he said. “Some had pistols, some had rifles, and they were strapping on bulletproof vests. There were all of a sudden ambulances, sirens and police cars There were cops coming from everywhere.”
The rampage was the latest of several shooting attacks across the nation, including one earlier Sunday in Kenosha, Wisconsin, that left three people dead. Mass killings have claimed four or more American lives every week for the past six weeks, leaving dozens dead and several more people wounded in their wake.
President Joe Biden’s calls for tighter gun restrictions have drawn little support in Texas. The shooting comes two days after the state House approved and sent to the Senate a bill that would allow anyone 21 or older to carry a handgun without a permit.