Man in critical condition after reportedly threatening officer near East William Cannon
By Bob Banta
American-Statesman Staff
Published: March 4, 1999
A policeman seriously wounded a man who he said charged him with a pointed tree branch late Tuesday -- the third time since January that Austin officers have shot someone.
Herbert Vences, 33, a Mexican citizen, was in critical condition late Wednesday with bullet wounds in the chest and stomach, police said.
He was shot by officer Troy Brown, a seven-year veteran, according to Austin Deputy Police Chief Bruce Mills.
The shooting of Vences, and two other men in East Austin earlier this year, has prompted concern from some residents.
"What is still simmering is the distrust," said the Rev. Rick Randall, pastor of Austin Cornerstone Church. "Every time one of these incidents happens, it's like someone takes a stick and they stir up the coals."
The community remains concerned about the number of shootings recently but needs to give police time to sort out the facts in Tuesday's case, said Randall, a supporter of Mayor Kirk Watson's recently announced program to promote racial harmony.
"We're concerned about the level of seeming increase in violence in the city, but we also know the chief of police is deeply commited to this racial reconciliation effort."
In the two previous shootings, one man was African American and the other was Hispanic.
Chief Stan Knee said Wednesday he could not comment on the shooting of Vences because investigators are trying to determine whether the shooting was necessary. "It is unfortunate any time an officer has to use deadly force," he said.
Police said events that led to the wounding began at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday. Officer Ross Arnold was working radar in the 2500 block of East William Cannon Drive when a motorist stopped and told him that a man down the street was lunging at passing motorists.
In the 4500 block of William Cannon Drive, Arnold was joined by Brown. The officers spotted Vences in the parking lot of J & M Auto Repair and tried to arrest him, but Vences ran into a wooded area.
Brown walked up to Vences with his gun drawn and ordered him to lie on the ground, according to Mills.
"Out of the blue, the suspect grabbed the limb of a tree above him and swung his legs toward officer Brown," Mills said. "When he did that, the tree limb broke, and the suspect took a broken piece of the limb -- about 14 inches long and three-fourths of an inch in diameter -- and raised it like a spear over the officer's face."
Mills said Brown was three to four feet from Vences when he fired two shots, hitting Vences in the chest and stomach. EMS paramedics treated Arnold for minor wounds and took Vences to Brackenridge Hopital.
Investigators said Wednesday they had not determined why Vences was lunging at cars.
Employees at the auto repair shop described Vences as someone who occasionally stopped by to smoke cigarettes, drink beer and chat.
"He was no troublemaker," said Ausencio Martinez, who drives the tow truck for J & M Auto Repair.
Daniel Garcia, who runs Genesis Auto Sales out of the same shop at 4500 E. William Cannon Drive, said Vences talked with him around 7 p.m. Tuesday about buying a car. Vences said he had a job possibility, doing contract work for the construction of a new school, Garcia said.
Mario Mariles, an official with the Mexican consulate, said he contacted Vences' family in Amatebec, about three hours west of Mexico City, on Wednesday. One of Vences' brothers, Jorge, was expected to arrive in Austin on Thursday, Mariles said.
Mariles said he didn't know how long Vences had been in the United States or where he worked. He has no relatives in the United States, Mariles said.
Vences' shooting is the third in the past two months involving city patrolmen.
On Jan. 23, officers Billie Hancock and Duane Williams shot and killed Albert Juarez Jr., 37, when he charged them with a box-cutter knife near East Seventh Street and Pleasant Valley Road.
On Feb. 2, Johnny Cornell was shot to death by officer Stan Farris after Cornell allegedly ran at Farris with a knife at East 12th and Hargrave streets. Grand juries cleared the officers in both cases.
Most of about a dozen neighborhood residents interviewed last week were still upset about Cornell's death.
Idalia Criado lives around the corner from the store where the shooting of Cornell happened. Cornell used to speak to her and try to sell her items, and he was never violent, she said. "Take his license away," said Criado, 19, referring to Farris. "He can't be doing that."
Knee said Wednesday that while the shootings of Cornell and Juarez were regrettable, "it was clear that the officers were at great risk and were required to use deadly force."
The shootings also have raised questions about police training.
Mills said the last time Brown had training in the use of force was Oct. 13 of last year. The deputy chief said that Brown had trained others on when to shoot at someone while serving in the U.S. Coast Guard just before joining the Austin Police Department.
Austin cadets receive six months of training, including weapons and defense courses. Officers in the field must take 40 hours of training every two years.
Police training officials say that at a distance of 15 feet, a man with a knife can stab an officer in a little over a second. Officers are trained to aim at the torso, because it is a large target and there is often no time to aim for a leg or other part of the body.
Mills said Brown has been placed on administrative duty pending the completion of the investigation, which is routine in instances in which officers fire their weapons. Details of the shooting will be reviewed by the Travis County district attorney's office.
Brown has had no disciplinary actions filed against him in his seven years with the department, according to civil service records.
Staff Writers Kelly Daniel, Rebecca Thatcher, Leah Quinn and Ben Wear contributed to this report.