It took Austin police 50 minutes to track down and arrest Ethan Nieneker, the gunman in Monday's deadly North Austin Target shooting. Could Flock Safety license plate readers have helped catch Nieneker sooner? Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis says yes, but others argue the drawbacks outweigh the benefits. On this week's Friday News Roundup, Executive Producer Eva Ruth Moravec is joined by MySA digital reporter Kelsey Thompson and Evil MoPac to discuss this and more. We get into the latest with I-35's rebuild, this weekend's likely "round two" special session, and what to do this weekend. 

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For many Americans, money is tight right now. But fear not, Austinites — there is still plenty to do on the cheap in this city, and the City Cast Austin team is here to tell you all about it. We’re shelling out our best tips for the cheapest breakfast tacos, heartiest affordable lunches, best dinner deals, our favorite happy hours for food and drink, and things to do for fun that are low-cost or free, like studio tours, dance lessons, improv shows, music, and more. 

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On Monday afternoon, Ethan Nieneker, a 32 year old male, opened fire in a North Austin Target parking lot, killing three and injuring others. Nieneker had previous encounters with the Austin Police Department and a record of mental health issues. On today's episode, executive producer Eva Ruth Moravec chats with Police Chief Lisa Davis to break down how the shooting unfolded and later with Tabetha Harrison, from the Texas Council on Family Violence, on why Nieneker shouldn’t have ever had a gun. 

This episode has been updated to correct the name of a victim, Rosa Machuca. 

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Recently, the Austin Aquarium got slapped with a rare warning from the United States Department of Agriculture for unsupervised interactions between animals and humans that went awry. The incidents themselves took place a couple of years ago, around the time that Austin’s Animal Advisory Commission formed a working group to examine aquariums. And, while the commission recommended that Austin City Council pass an ordinance limiting interactions between wild animals and the public at for-profit aquariums and zoos, the measure was never adopted. Host Nikki DaVaughn is joined by Rebecca Smudzinski, associate director of captive wildlife for the PETA Foundation, to get into the Austin Aquarium’s history, the latest warning, and why PETA thinks the wild animal recommendation should be revisited. 

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This week, Austin City Council will adopt next year’s budget, and all signs are pointing towards a tax rate election. Sales taxes aren’t what they used to be, federal cuts have hit the city’s bottom line, and employment costs continue to rise, all contributing to the $33.4 million deficit that isn’t going away anytime soon. Host Nikki DaVaughn is joined by Amy Stansbury of The Austin Common to get into the three things that every Austinite should know about how the city plans to spend your money. 

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This week, Texas House Democrats fled the state, breaking quorum in an effort to block a vote on redistricting. In response, Republican lawmakers have threatened legal action and have even called on the FBI to track them down. On this week's Friday News Roundup, host Nikki DaVaughn is joined by Hey Austin newsletter editor Kelsey Bradshaw and executive producer Eva Ruth Moravec to break down the political standoff and what it means for the special session. Plus, we get into the permanent barricades coming to Sixth Street, newly discovered dinosaur footprints in Big Sandy Creek, and why every Austinite should watch HBO's 'The Yogurt Shop Murders'. Want to learn more about the series? Listen to our conversation with the documentary's director. 

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Two new state laws have caused major changes at Texas’ public universities, just as loads of cash has been channeled to new institutions claiming a more “anti-woke” approach to education. As a result, professors have left The University of Texas at Austin, reports today’s guest, Brant Bingamon, in the Austin Chronicle. He joins host Nikki DaVaughn to talk about the $100 million School of Civic Leadership at UT, backed by conservative politicians including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick; the University of Austin; and UT’s brain drain. 

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The State of Texas just set a new execution date of Oct. 16 for Robert Roberson, convicted of killing his two-year-old daughter in 2002. Last October, the Supreme Court of Texas stepped in to stay his execution at the last minute, after state lawmakers raised questions about his potential innocence, but then lifted the stay one month later, clearing the way for this new execution date. For today’s episode, we revisit a conversation host Nikki DaVaughn had with Michelle Lyons shortly after the stay to break down Roberson’s case and Texas’ prolific use of the death penalty. And she knows all about it — Lyons, a former public information officer for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, has witnessed hundreds of executions and even wrote a memoir about her experiences. As you might imagine, this interview touches on some difficult topics, so please listen with care. 

This episode originally aired on November 12, 2024

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After Democrats fled Austin in order to keep the Texas House from taking up redistricting, Gov. Greg Abbott threatened to remove them from office and suggested they might be committing bribery by fundraising to cover $500-a-day fines. Still, the Democrats have declared the special session is over and appear to be well-resourced enough to back that up. Executive Producer Eva Ruth Moravec is joined by Scott Braddock, editor of the Quorum Report, to unpack what’s taken place and talk about what’s to come.  

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The violent deaths of four teenagers in an Austin yogurt shop in 1991 forever changed the city, and Austin’s collective trauma is on full display in a new HBO documentary series, “The Yogurt Shop Murders.” Over the years, detectives have tried to find the killers, and two people were even convicted – but later released after being cleared by DNA. Still unsolved, the killings of Amy Ayers, 13; Eliza Thomas, 17; and sisters Jennifer Harbison, 17, and Sarah Harbison, 15, rocked the teenage years of host Nikki DaVaughn, she shares in today’s episode with the series’ director, Margaret Brown. The first episode is out now, and three more will be released in the coming weeks