Austin police arrest 2 in connection with street racing events, report 4 separate incidents

Two people were arrested after Austin police responded to four instances of illegal "street takeovers" Saturday night and early Sunday.

The two, whose names were not released, were charged with evading arrest. Austin police said they are continuing to investigate the incidents, and that more charges might be filed.

The first incident, videos of which went viral on social media, happened at South Lamar Boulevard and Barton Springs Road in South Austin. The first 911 call was received about 9 p.m., and within minutes, multiple 911 calls reported that people were racing, circling the intersection, running red lights, blocking traffic and shooting off fireworks, the Austin Police Department said in a statement.

More:Chaotic Austin 'street racing incidents' Saturday night fuel local policing discourse

The intersection was not cleared until nearly 45 minutes after the first 911 call, the statement said. The first officer arrived nearly 20 minutes after the incident started because no units were nearby, police said.

The statement did not mention some things seen in videos and posts on social media, including police initially speeding through the intersection and leaving before returning about 10 minutes later to clear the crowd. Other videos showed a group of people pushing back a squad car and shooting fireworks at the car.

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Nearly 40 minutes after the group was dispersed, an officer reported a group at East Anderson Lane and the Interstate 35 service road in North Austin. Police said people began driving recklessly and said officers again cleared the crowd, though a time was not given for when it was dispersed.

Roughly an hour and a half later, at 12:52 a.m., multiple 911 callers said a group was in the Mueller neighborhood at Berkman Drive and Barbara Jordan Boulevard. Officers arrived nearly six minutes later, reported that glass was being thrown and began clearing the crowd, which took about 10 minutes.

Officers received the last call at 1:35 a.m. with reports of someone starting a fire and cars doing doughnuts at Metric Boulevard and Braker Lane in North Austin. Videos on social media captured the incident, with a truck driving through a fire and an explosion occurring. While the truck appeared undamaged, videos showed multiple people on fire, although they seemed to get the fire put out.

Police said that crowd was dispersed at 1:56 a.m.

During these incidents, police reported that people threw rocks and bottles and pointed lasers at them and at squad cars. One officer sustained injuries but has been released from the hospital.

Police called the incidents "street takeovers," but they are also known as "sideshows" and first gained popularity in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1980s and ❜90s.

American-Statesman reviews of Instagram accounts connected to the coordinated event found that it was planned for weeks and included groups and people from cities across the state, including San Antonio and Houston.

Watson says street takeovers 'illegal and outrageous'

Austin Mayor Kirk Watson called the street takeovers "illegal and outrageous" and said they would "result in arrest," according to a statement released Monday.

"The dramatic videos have gone viral and made some folks Internet famous but, for me, the bigger issue is the significant wait times for 911 calls," he said.

According to Watson, Austin's 911 call center received four times the normal number of calls on a Saturday night. He said he has spoken to interim City Manager Jesús Garza and Police Chief Joe Chacon to explore temporary solutions to staffing shortages.

"The Austin Police Association posted some false comments on Sunday that appeared to wrongly conflate this illegal incident with important community conversations about safety and oversight," the statement said.

The City Council voted last week not to approve a four-year contract agreement reached by the police union and then-City Manager Spencer Cronk. Instead, city leaders want to negotiate a one-year extension of the current police contract.

Those opposed to the one-year extension said delaying the approval of a four-year contract would give the appearance of unstable labor and management relations, which could hinder the department's recruiting and retention efforts.

Watson said the City Council "will take up an ordinance this week to assure APD officers' wages, benefits and payout of sick leave hours upon separation are continued as covered under the current contract" but added that the ordinance is not a better outcome than a one-year agreement.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin street racing incidents lead to two arrests