An Austin police officer was temporarily suspended for one day after an internal investigation found he violated department policy by conducting a high-speed maneuver to immobilize a vehicle without supervisor approval.
According to a Jan. 15 memorandum from Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis, the discipline stems from a June 20, 2025 incident in which Officer Mason Brown witnessed what he believed to be a drive-by shooting from a moving vehicle in East Austin. Brown pursued the suspect vehicle for about 14 minutes over roughly 23 miles, then executed a PIT maneuver at nearly 90 mph after supervisors had denied authorization for a high-speed PIT and instructed him to slow below policy limits.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, a PIT (Precision Immobilization Technique) maneuver is “a technique used by law enforcement personnel to force a fleeing vehicle to abruptly turn 180 degrees, causing the vehicle to stall and stop.”…