Officer suspended for running red light

AUSTIN (KXAN) - An Austin police officer has been suspended for running a red light and causing a crash with another vehicle. It is the fourth time in the last year that an Austin police officer has run a red light and caused a crash.

On July 16, APD Officer Francisco Gobourn was responding to a crime in progress when he ran the red light on the westbound service road at Rundberg Lane and Interstate 35 and hit a truck in the middle of the intersection.

"In this particular case, the officer had his lights on with no siren," said Assistant Police Chief Sean Mannix. "In cases like that- we take it very seriously."

Gobourn was suspended for two days because he failed to make sure it was safe to go through the red light, which is APD policy.

"Prior to going through the red light, the officer needs to clear the intersection, which means in most cases, coming to a complete stop and making sure there's no side traffic and then proceeding," said Mannix.

A rookie Austin police officer resigned after a crash in November 2011 when he ran a red light and crashed in to another car in South Austin. Another officer in his car and two people in the other vehicle were injured, but the injuries were not serious. 

On New Year's Day 2012, an APD officer responding to a crime in progress call ran a red light without her sirens on and slammed in to an ambulance responding to another emergency on Riverside Drive and Congress Avenue. Both the officer and the driver of the ambulance were hurt. That officer was suspended for three days.
  
"I can think of no circumstance where an officer would run a red light without lights or sirens," said Mannix. "The expectation is that they do follow policy and protocol in those situations."

In total, nine Austin police officers have been suspended for causing traffic accidents in 2012.