Local
Philadelphia officer identified in fatal Parkway shooting; SEPTA officer’s name withheld
Police identified the man killed as 60-year-old William Austin and the Philadelphia officer who fired at him as Eric Lee. The shooting near 21st Street and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway remains under investigation by city police and the District Attorney’s Office.
A Philadelphia police officer and a SEPTA police officer each fired one round at 60-year-old William Austin during a fatal encounter on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway on Oct. 9, according to Philadelphia police. Austin was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Police identified the Philadelphia officer as Eric Lee, 38. The department has not released the name of the SEPTA officer, saying it will not identify that officer in this case. Lee has been assigned to administrative duty while the investigation continues, in keeping with department policy.
Officers from both departments were called to the area of 21st Street and the Parkway at about 11 a.m. after a report of a man with a gun, officials said. Responding officers reported seeing Austin point a revolver in several directions, including at police.
Police said Austin placed the gun on the ground at one point, then picked it up again about a minute later and fired once toward the ground. Detectives recovered a .357-caliber revolver at the scene, with three live rounds and three spent casings, according to police.
The Philadelphia Police Department’s Officer-Involved Shooting Investigation Unit, its Internal Affairs Bureau and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office are investigating. The department says releasing the name of a Philadelphia officer involved in a shooting is part of its policy during an ongoing investigation.