An argument near the basketball courts at Gillis Neighborhood Park turned violent on August 26 when a woman allegedly grabbed a large stick and struck a person in the head multiple times, leaving him with serious injuries. More than a month later, Austin police still haven't identified a suspect and are asking the public for help.
According to KXAN Austin, the fight broke out between 5 and 7 p.m. near the courts at Gillis Neighborhood Park, located at 2410 Durwood St. What began as an argument between two people escalated into a physical altercation, during which the suspect reportedly picked up a large stick and hit the victim repeatedly in the head.
Per the City of Austin, the altercation left the victim with serious injuries. No further details about the victim's identity, age, or current condition have been released.
Description of the Suspect
Police describe the suspect as a Black woman between 45 and 55 years old, standing approximately 5 feet 3 inches tall and weighing around 120 pounds, with short black hair. No arrest has been announced, and the station's report does not indicate whether investigators have identified any persons of interest since the incident occurred.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact APD's aggravated assault unit at 512-974-5245.
Part of a Broader Crime Picture
The search for the suspect comes as Austin's overall violent crime numbers have been trending downward. Austin's mid-year violent-crime case count fell to 1,992 in 2026, down from 2,172 in 2025 and 2,243 in 2024, the same outlet reported. Aggravated assault is one of four offenses, along with murder, rape, and robbery, that the Austin Police Department reports to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program as part of that broader violent-crime tally, according to data.austintexas.gov.
The city's aggravated-assault statistics are compiled from NIBRS Group A Offense Crimes data covering January 1, 2020, through the end of the most recent complete month, per catalog.data.gov. It remains unclear how the Gillis Neighborhood Park case factors into those citywide figures, but APD was still seeking information to identify the suspect on October 7, 2026, exactly six weeks after the August 26 incident.
