Suspect in Texas killings tried to escape from jail, affidavit says

AUSTIN, Texas — A Texas man arrested in connection with Tuesday's rampage that killed six people and injured three others attempted to escape from jail, court records show.

Shane James ran out of a room after an officer opened the door to leave, said Kristen Dark, public information officer for the Travis County Sheriff's Office. She added James was in a "multi-floor, secured building" when he attempted his escape from Travis County Jail on Wednesday.

The suspected gunman resisted deputies who were restraining him after he bolted out the door, Dark said. At this time, no other charges have been filed for his escape attempt.

Officers arrested James on Tuesday night and found a 1911 .45-caliber pistol in his waistband, along with multiple handgun magazines in his pocket, according to the affidavit. Police suspect the 34-year-old former U.S. Army officer killed his parents and four others in a shooting spree across Austin and San Antonio Tuesday, leaving a trail of blood on a middle school baseball field, a busy road in South Austin, and three homes.

Supect was arrested last year

In January 2022, Bexar County deputies arrested James – then living with his parents in their eastern Bexar County home – on suspicion of assault against his father, mother, and a sibling, according to court records. Officials charged him with three counts of misdemeanor assault against a family member. 

James' family told authorities he had mental health issues at the time of the 2022 arrest, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said. Weeks later, he was bonded out of jail with a condition barring him from owning or purchasing a firearm, court records show.

Salazar said the firearm used by James was a "large caliber handgun," an inference made from the shell casing found at the scene. Ownership of the firearm or how it came into James’ possession is not clear.

Residents question why emergency alert not sent

The Austin Police Department responded to concerns from residents who questioned why officials did not send out emergency alerts amid Tuesday's string of shootings.

"I don't know how it works, but I don't understand why we didn't get a manhunt text or something saying, 'Stay in your homes,'" said Claire Mead, a resident of the Circle C neighborhood in South Austin where two people were killed.

Several Circle C residents told the American-Statesman, part of the USA TODAY Network, that they received no form of official communication while the situation was unfolding but wished they had been alerted. Some relied on neighborhood text threads and Facebook groups for information.  

Texas state Rep. Vikki Goodwin, whose district includes Circle C, questioned why an alert wasn't sent Tuesday, stating that she got in touch with the Texas Department of Public Safety after the shooting near the high school.

"The failure to use the alert system raises questions," Goodwin said in a statement. "There were multiple points in time throughout the day when the alert might have been relevant and might have saved lives.

"Understandably, law enforcement doesn’t want to unnecessarily cause a panic in a community, however that concern must be balanced with the notion that an alert may cause people to change their behavior. An alert might cause people to stay off the streets, to keep a closer eye on strangers, be ready to dial 911, or watch out for neighbors."

Police say incident not 'active shooting event'

Police said an active shooter alert, which was established by state law, was not sent out to residents because Tuesday's incidents were "not an active shooting event."

"This was a series of events which took place in several different locations across the city with various or unknown motives and no specific commonality," police said in a statement. "It is not common practice for APD, or any other law enforcement agency, to issue any sort of alert for every shooting that happens in their jurisdiction with an unidentified shooter."

Investigators began to consider whether the first shooting in Austin at a high school and a double homicide in South Austin later Tuesday were connected. But by that time, the final killings at Circle C had taken place, Austin police said.

"An important thing to note, these incidents did not take place in one specific area of Austin, and the initial evidence we had did not show any similarities," police said. "The Austin Police Department takes the safety of our community seriously, but we must do our due diligence to ensure the information we share is done in a timely and accurate manner."