AUSTIN, Texas — Austin police say they are still investigating whether terrorism played a role in the Sixth Street mass shooting, describing it as a possible motive that remains under review.

On Thursday, the Austin Police Department released officer-worn body camera footage from the night of the shooting and played recordings of emergency calls placed in the moments after gunfire erupted early Sunday morning.

“Hello, this is Austin 911. There has been a shooting at Buford’s on Sixth Street. There are people dead,” a caller told dispatchers in one of the recordings. Authorities say numerous calls flooded the 911 center after a gunman opened fire, killing three people and injuring more than a dozen others.

Police Chief Lisa Davis said some of the footage investigators reviewed shows the suspect firing into a crowd, but those images are too graphic to release publicly. “Any video showing the suspect firing his pistol into the crowd is too graphic to show, and we will not be showing that publicly,” Davis said.

RELATED| APD releases bodycam footage, 911 calls from West 6th Street mass shooting

According to investigators, the suspect was driving on West Sixth Street toward Rio Grande Street when he stopped in front of Buford’s and fired into a crowd with a semi-automatic handgun. Body camera footage from responding officers captures the chaotic moments as police and bystanders reacted to the gunfire.

“I am with you,” one officer says in the video before shouting, “AR-15. AR-15. Down! Everybody down!”

Police say not all of the victims were inside the bar when the shooting occurred.“One of the victims was outside of Buford’s waiting for an Uber,” I said during a news conference. Chief Davis agreed that the victims were spread out. “These were not all the people who were in the bar,” she said. “Sixth Street is an entertainment area from east to west. It is an entertainment area. People come to walk along Sixth Street.”

Surveillance video shows the suspect later parking a black SUV, getting out with an AR-15-style rifle, and shooting a pedestrian. By that point, officers had already been dispatched and arrived 57 seconds after the first emergency call, police said. Investigators say the suspect then fired toward officers.“The suspect discharged his weapon at the direction of the officers. The three officers discharged their firearm, striking him multiple times,” Davis said. Body camera footage from the scene caught officers asking, “Where is he? Who shot them?” before additional gunfire is heard.

City leaders say the officers’ rapid response helped prevent further loss of life. Meantime, investigators are asking anyone with video or photos from that night to share them with them.

AUSTIN, Texas — An update to the Austin Police Department’s (APD) procedures outlines that officers are not required to contact U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) when a person is found to have an ICE administrative warrant if they have no other arrestable charge.  

The update follows a controversial deportation from January, when a woman’s disturbance call to APD led to her detainment, alongside her 5-year-old child, who is a U.S. citizen.  

The incident led to questions from the community regarding the way APD is supposed to interact with ICE.  

In a March 4 memo, APD Police Chief Lisa Davis said that the directives provided by ICE administrative warrants could be confusing in their wording.

According to Davis, officers have not historically regularly encountered administrative warrants while using the National Crime Information Center database, which is used to conduct identity checks. However, in 2025, federal agencies began entering a large volume of administrative warrants into the system.

According to the memo, administrative warrants are formatted in a way that looks similar to criminal warrants in the system.

The APD General Orders have been updated to clearly define the difference between criminal warrants and ICE administrative warrants, as well as specific instructions for how ICE administrative warrants should be handled moving forward.

“APD recognizes the sensitivity of this issue, not only within our city but across the nation. These policies were updated to provide clarity to our officers, ensure compliance with state law, and maintain officer discretion guided by supervisory oversight and operational consideration,” Davis said in the memo.

The updated procedures instruct officers to contact their supervisor when a person is found to have only an ICE administrative warrant, but no other arrestable criminal charge. From there, the officer or their supervisor may contact ICE, but is not required to.

“Austin Police and City of Austin leadership share a paramount goal for Austin to be a safe city for everyone who lives, works, or visits here,” Davis said in the memo. “We particularly want to ensure that anyone who witnesses or is the victim of a crime feels secure in contacting the police for help.”

According to the memo, the entire APD staff will be required to complete new training regarding these updates.  

“In concert with the policy updates, APD is launching a public webpage to help people understand their rights and provide links to resources available from the City of Austin and community organizations, such as Know Your Rights training,” Davis said in the memo. “The webpage will also include information on the option of using APD Victim Services as an alternative to calling 9-1-1, when appropriate, and links to all general orders and policies related to immigration.”