Travis County jury convicts Austin man of murder in March 2024 Wickersham Lane shooting

Verdict and sentence following 2024 Riverside-area killing

A Travis County jury has convicted Adam Brown of murder in connection with the March 23, 2024 shooting death of Christopher Rodriguez, 44, after a confrontation outside an apartment complex in Austin’s Riverside area. The trial ended with a guilty verdict on April 16, 2025.

During the punishment phase, jurors accepted a “sudden passion” finding, which in Texas can reduce the applicable punishment range. Brown was sentenced to eight years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

What investigators and trial evidence described

The underlying incident unfolded late at night on March 23, 2024, at an apartment property in the 2200 block of Wickersham Lane. Police were dispatched around 9:39 p.m. and found Rodriguez suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene despite lifesaving efforts.

Authorities said Brown and Rodriguez had been involved in a disturbance that escalated into gunfire. Court filings and trial testimony described the confrontation as beginning with an argument while Brown and his girlfriend were walking two dogs near the apartments. The dispute intensified after one of the dogs barked and lunged, leading to a heated exchange.

• Rodriguez was described as threatening to kill the dogs and crossing the street to retrieve a tree branch.
• Brown and his girlfriend were described as retreating to their apartment, then returning with weapons: Brown with a gun and his girlfriend with a bat.
• During the continued confrontation, Rodriguez threw a tree branch that did not strike Brown and did not cause property damage.

Evidence presented to jurors included eyewitness accounts and a 911 call placed by neighbors who observed the encounter.

Self-defense claim contested at trial

Brown later sought to justify the shooting as self-defense, asserting that Rodriguez had threatened him with a knife, bent down to reach for a rock, and ran toward him. Prosecutors argued the evidence did not support that account, including a witness description that Rodriguez did not have a weapon in his hands at the moment he was shot. The sound of gunfire was captured on the 911 call, which became part of the evidentiary record described in the case.

Case timeline

• March 23, 2024: Rodriguez is shot and killed outside the Wickersham Lane apartments.

• March 24, 2024: Brown is arrested and charged with murder.

• May 9, 2024: A grand jury indicts Brown on a murder charge.

• April 16, 2025: A Travis County jury convicts Brown.

• Following the “sudden passion” finding: Brown is sentenced to eight years in state prison.