Barton Springs Pool slaying among 9 Austin homicides in August; death toll on 2021's record pace

On consecutive days last month, two men were found slain on some of Austin's most popular parkland. One was found bludgeoned near Auditorium Shores; the other was found shot outside the city's iconic Barton Springs Pool.

They were just two of nine people — all men — who were homicide victims last month in Austin, authorities confirmed Friday. Six were shot and three died after being beaten, police said.

Austin had more than twice as many homicides in August as in the same month last year, and the total number of killings in 2022 is back on pace with the death toll in the first eight months of 2021, the city's deadliest year for homicides.

More:27-year-old man found slain in shooting near Barton Springs Pool, Austin police say

Last year, authorities tallied four homicides in August, for a total of 53 violent deaths in the first eight months. The nine homicides reported last month brought the total number in 2022 to 52, police records show.

By the end of 2021, police had recorded 89 homicides, the most since at least the 1960s, when authorities began keeping such records. The death toll last year was more than the number of killings in 2019 and 2020 combined.

Austin's previous record for homicides in a year was 59 in 1984, when the homicide rate was 13.2 per 100,000 residents. And while the 89 homicides in 2021 were well above the 59 reported in 1984, the rate was 9.25 per 100,000 residents. The rate was 3.4 in 2019 and 4.4 in 2020, and the rate from January through August this year was 5.4.

Shootings cause 75% of homicides in 2022

Shooting injuries were the cause of at least 39 of the 52 homicides this year, according to police records. Six of those shootings were in August:

● Aug. 5: Police responded about 2 p.m. to a reported shooting at a gas station in the 6200 block of East Ben White Boulevard. Officers found Juan Pablo Morales-Rivera on the ground with a gunshot wound. The 32-year-old was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

Investigators believe Morales-Rivera got into an argument with 29-year-old Jose Hernandez that escalated into Hernandez shooting him. After the shooting, Hernandez drove away in Morales-Rivera's vehicle, according to police. The vehicle was found abandoned that day.

That night, authorities received a call from another person reporting a carjacking at an apartment complex in the 3200 block of South Pleasant Valley Road in Southeast Austin. Officers learned that the suspect in the carjacking matched a description of Hernandez, police said.

Officers found Hernandez inside the stolen vehicle, and an Austin police SWAT team took him into custody, police said.

● Aug. 6: Police responded about 2 a.m. to a shooting in the 400 block of East Seventh Street. Investigators said 20-year-old Dionysius Thompson was found lying on the ground, unresponsive, with several gunshot wounds. He died at the scene.

An hour after Thompson died, authorities arrested 18-year-old Nathan Ramirez for an unrelated crime. He was charged with possession of a controlled substance, a second-degree felony, and unlawfully carrying a weapon, aClass A misdemeanor.

Ramirez was released from jail Aug. 8 but was arrested again on a charge of first-degree murder Aug. 10 after authorities linked his gun to Thompson's killing, according to police.

● Aug. 9: Officers responded to the 1600 block of Ohlen Road in North Austin, where they found 72-year-old Antonio Castro and another man with shooting injuries. Both men were taken to a hospital.

Investigators later learned that Castro and the other man had been sitting side-by-side behind a gas station when an unidentified third man walked up and shot them. Castro died Aug. 24, according to police.

● Aug. 10: Police were called to the 2100 block of East Oltorf Street, where they found 27-year-old Marvin Flint with gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

Investigators said they believe Flint was walking along Oltorf Street when another person, who authorities said knew the victim, approached him and shot him. The investigation is ongoing.

● Aug. 16: About 11 a.m., police were called to East Sixth and Sabine streets in response to a reported shooting. They found 36-year-old Chester Sauls with a gunshot wound. He died at the scene, according to investigators. A person of interest has been identified, police said.

● Aug. 25: Authorities responded about 7:15 a.m. to Barton Springs Pool at Zilker Park after receiving a call from pool employees who said a vehicle parked nearby had bullet holes in a window.

Investigators followed a blood trail from the vehicle and found a man, later identified as 27-year-old Camnik Campbell, who had been shot. Campbell died at the scene, according to police. The investigation is ongoing.

Three men fatally beaten, police say

Authorities investigated three unrelated fatal beatings in Austin in August:

● Aug. 1: Police were called to the 8500 block of Bradford Drive in North Austin about 11 p.m. Investigators said a witness called 911 to report that 24-year-old Cristo Rodriguez had hit his roommate and left the home in a vehicle.

Officers found 65-year-old Kenneth Emery lying on the ground, badly beaten and unresponsive. Emery suffered significant injuries to his head, arms and hands, according to police. He died at the scene.

Police said they think Emery and Rodriguez got into an argument, which led to the killing. On Aug. 2, Rodriguez was found and charged with first-degree murder.

● Aug. 10: Police responded to another call about a beating about 1 p.m. in the 1200 block of Kramer Lane. Authorities found 40-year-old Josue Salazar lying on the ground and unresponsive with apparent trauma. He died shortly after police arrived.

Investigators allege that 18-year-old Jose Lopez-Mederos drove to the location, walked up to Salazar and hit him repeatedly with a baseball bat. Lopez-Mederos was arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

● Aug. 24: Police responded to Auditorium Shores at Town Lake Metropolitan Park, off West Riverside Drive, just before 7 a.m. after a person on a morning jog stumbled across an injured man.

Investigators have not identified the victim but described him as a middle-aged man who might have been experiencing homelessness. The man had trauma to his head and died at the scene, according to officers.

Police have since accused 30-year-old Coltan Moore of bludgeoning the victim on a trail at the park with large rocks.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin had 9 homicides in August, including at Barton Springs Pool