APD clarifies man died of suicide, not blunt force trauma, on Lady Bird Lake trail

The Austin Police Department is investigating a suicide near Lady Bird Lake and Rainey Street that was initially identified as the result of blunt force trauma, the law enforcement agency said on social media.

Police responded to an urgent welfare check call about 5:30 p.m. Friday on Waller Beach in Town Lake Metropolitan Park reporting a man with life-threatening injuries on the trail, said officer Austin Zarling, a spokesperson for the department. Austin police, Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services and the Austin Fire Department all responded to the scene. The man was pronounced dead 15 minutes later, Zarling said.

The death is not being investigated as a homicide, Zarling said. The man has not yet been identified.

Zarling said the man sustained a self-inflicted gunshot wound and not blunt force trauma, as indicated in initial accounts. Police believe it was an isolated incident.