Case:  23-2760152 

Date:  Tuesday, October 3, 2023  

Time:  3:07 a.m.  

Location:  12000 block of Research Boulevard SB  

Deceased:  Reice Samuel Brown, White male, 8/22/1996 

The Austin Police Department (APD) continues to investigate the in-custody death that occurred on Tuesday, October 3, 2023.

At approximately 3:07 a.m., APD officers responded to multiple 9-1-1 calls reporting a pedestrian in the 12000 block of Research Boulevard. The 9-1-1 callers reported that a man wearing blue jean shorts and no shirt was in the lanes of travel of the high-speed roadway. The callers also reported that the man had obvious injuries to his body.

APD officers arrived on scene at approximately 3:11 a.m., and located the man described in the call, who was later identified as Reice Samuel Brown. Officers attempted to make verbal contact with Mr. Brown and deescalate the situation. Mr. Brown was not responsive to the officers’ requests. He began walking away, and seriously injuring himself with a metal object in front of the officers. In order to prevent further injury, one of the officers deployed his Department-approved taser. The taser was effective, which then allowed officers to place  Mr. Brown in handcuffs, render aid, and perform CPR prior to Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services (A/TCEMS) arriving on scene. Mr. Brown was then transported to a local hospital by A/TCEMS.

At approximately 4:05 a.m., Mr. Brown was pronounced deceased.

Because Mr. Brown died shortly after contact with APD officers, this incident is being investigated as an in-custody death. The cause of death will be determined by the medical examiner. 

This incident was captured on two officers’ body-worn cameras. Per APD policy, the videos will be released within ten business days. The APD officer that deployed his Department-approved taser has two years and eleven months of service with the Department.

APD will conduct two concurrent investigations into this incident: a criminal investigation conducted by the APD Special Investigations Unit in conjunction with the Travis County District Attorney's Office and an administrative investigation conducted by the APD Internal Affairs Unit, with oversight from the Office of Police Oversight.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call APD's Special Investigation Unit at (512) 974-6840 or Capitol Area Crime Stoppers at 512-472-8477. For the Capitol Area Crime Stoppers submission, you may submit a tip online at austincrimestoppers.org. You may remain anonymous