Chaos briefly descended upon a Terra Linda neighborhood yesterday when Antoinae Tajzahnique Austin, a 30-year-old San Rafael resident, was arrested after two separate violent incidents. The San Rafael Police Department has reported that Austin assaulted a person with a knife before threatening another victim in a subsequent event. The search for Austin led to a shelter-in-place notification as police worked to locate and apprehend her. According to a social media post by the San Rafael Police Department, Austin was taken into custody following a brief standoff and booked into the Marin County Jail on multiple charges.
SEARCH FOR SUSPECT PROMPTED SHELTER-IN-PLACE NOTIFICATION:
— San Rafael Police Department (@SanRafaelPolice) August 13, 2025
San Rafael, CA – On Tuesday evening, SRPD officers arrested Antoinae Tajzahnique Austin, a 30-year-old San Rafael resident, after she assaulted a victim with a knife and threatened another in two different incidents.… pic.twitter.com/a7DoWZojRE
Details of the first assault surfaced when the SRPD responded to an emergency call just before 5:30 PM from a housing facility located at the 3300 block of Kerner Boulevard. A female resident, later identified as Austin, reportedly stabbed another resident during an argument, leaving the victim with non-life-threatening injuries. While the victim was to receive medical treatment quickly, Austin fled, only to allegedly surface again later, to brandish a knife and make criminal threats to another individual in the San Pablo Avenue area. This succession of events prompted SRPD to request additional assistance from various law enforcement agencies and to issue the shelter-in-place notification "out of an abundance of caution," as per the San Rafael Police Department.
The second emergency call came at 6:50 PM, with the suspect's description aligning with Austin's. The police's effort to capture Austin intensified when she was reported to have fled into the open space. A coordinated search involved resources from the Marin County Sheriff’s Office UAV/Drone Team and the California Highway Patrol’s helicopter unit. However, upon receiving information that Austin had returned, the search pivot back to the housing facility on Kerner Boulevard, prompting the cancellation of the shelter-in-place notification.
Upon their return to the housing facility, officers discovered Austin barricaded in a bathroom. Despite the efforts by the San Rafael and Novato Regional Crisis Negotiation Team to peacefully resolve the situation, Austin refused to surrender, leading officers to enter the bathroom to detain her forcibly. She was subsequently booked on charges including felony assault with a deadly weapon (knife), brandishing of a knife, and resisting/obstructing a peace officer. The San Rafael Police Department invites anyone with additional information about these crimes to reach out at (415) 485-3000 or to provide tips online at their official tips page.
