Officer Quintana Shooting: Austin PD

Facts of the incident:
■The shooting occurred on Monday, May 11, 2009 at 5am in the Walnut Creek Apartments at 6409 Springdale Road in East Austin.
■The shooter was Officer Leonardo Quintana, an 8 year veteran of Austin PD. The deceased was Nathaniel Sanders II, 18 years old.
■Three days before the shooting while officers were investigating a recent robbery in the same apartment complex, residents notified them of suspects driving a Mercedes-Benz station wagon and firing shots in the air.
■The morning of the shooting, Officer Quintana observed the Mercedes-Benz station wagon.
■As Officer Quintana followed the Mercedes into the apartment complex, dispatch verified that the vehicle was involved in criminal activity and the occupants could be armed.
■The driver, Michael Franklin, got out and was detained by Quintana. He secured Franklin in the back of his squad.
■Backup Officers Alex Hitzelberg and Mohammad Siddiqui arrived. Of all three squads, only the video camera in Hitzelberg’s was recording.
■Officers approach the Mercedes and Quintana attempts to wake Nathaniel Sanders, asleep in the back seat, with a sternum rub.
■Quintana raises Sanders’ shirt and discovers a gun tucked in the waistband. The audio of Hitzelberg’s videotape records that Quintana alerts other officers of the gun as Quintana and Sanders struggle over it.
■Quintana moves to the rear of the car and begins firing. Two out of three rounds hit Sanders, one in the shoulder and one in the back of the head.
■The front passenger Sir Smith exits the vehicle and runs in a crouched position with his hands at his waistband toward Quintana. Quintana fires twice, hitting Smith once in the upper chest.
■Smith was treated at University Medical Center at Brackenridge and is expected to make a full recovery.
■The Austin American Statesman provides an excellent graphic depicting the positions of the vehicles and the location of Quintana as he fired.
■A handgun with one live round of ammunition was found in Sanders seat. Sanders’ Toxicology Report revealed cocaine, marijuana, and alprazolam (Xanax) in his system.

Officer Hitzelberg’s Dashcam Video of the Shooting

Immediate aftermath
■At about 9am local residents formed a crowd and began yelling obscenities and throwing rocks and bottles at officers.
■Eight officers were injured and eight squad cars were damaged.
■Chief Acevedo was on scene and avoided a bottle thrown at him.
■Officers donned riot gear.
■Community leaders and Sanders’ father attempted to calm tensions.
■Officers are criticized for allowing Sander’s body to remain uncovered for 3 hours while waiting for the medical examiner. An officer later covers the body with a blanket.


Background of Quintana and Sanders

Officer Qunitana was an 8 year veteran of Austin PD.
■100 Club Officer of the Year in 2003
■Received the Superior Service Citation in 2005
■Received the Commander’s Recognition Award in 2007
■Received the CMT Campaign Ribbon
■Employee of the Year finalist in 2008
■Received a 15 day suspension that was later reduced to a written reprimand for a disturbance with his girlfriend in 2006.

Nathaniel Sanders was 18 years old.
■Attended Travis High and graduated from American Youthworks Charter School but did not receive a diploma because he did not pass TAKS.
■Arrested several times. Most recent arrest was for robbery and had just been released from jail Thursday before the shooting.
■At the time of the shooting he was on probation from a 2008 possession of crack cocaine case.

Quoted:
Newspaper article said Sander's gun did not have Sanders fingerprints on it...can you verify?