Shocking video shows as a Texas attorney tried to shoot his ex-girlfriend at the Austin bar he worked at on Saturday, as several heroic customers rushed to her rescue.
Gavin Rush, 41, is already out on bond after reportedly storming into the Anderson Mill Pub around 11:30 a.m. Saturday, when he approached his ex as she worked behind the bar, according to arrest records obtained by KVUE.
Surveillance video shows as Rush places a small leather satchel on the table as he allegedly asked to speak with her.
He was then seen pulling out a handgun after she says no, with a laser sight target aimed directly at her chest, according to an affidavit and the chilling CCTV footage shared by by Austin City Councilwoman Mackenzie Kelly.
Two customers at the bar immediately left into action and tackled Rush as he fired off several shots amidst the squabble. The Good Samaritans then held him down as police arrived.
Miraculously, no one was injured during the heated altercation.
The intended victim told investigators that Rush had recently learned she was in a new relationship. She added that she had stopped answering his text messages after he threatened to hurt both him and her new partner.
One heroic customer who helped to disarm Rush told KVUE that seeing the CCTV clip of the incident makes him “just want to throw up.”
“I don’t remember doing this, but I pushed his hand up and the gun went off,” the man, who wished to remain anonymous, told the outlet. “Then we started flying backwards. I turned and grabbed him around the neck and another shot went off.”
Another customer said that Rush attempted to shoot himself in the head as they wrestled him to the ground. But added that he was able to keep Rush’s finger off of the trigger.
Rush fired three shots in total, and the customer is now “completely deaf” in his left ear. Both customers who jumped in to help were aware of the former couple’s backstory, Fox 7 Austin reports.
Meanwhile, Rush was charged with a second-degree felony, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon family violence.
According to KVUE, Rush was quickly released from jail after posting a $40,000 bond. An emergency protection order was issued against him.
One of the customers present at the shooting incident slammed the judge for releasing him after “trying to murder (his) ex-girlfriend.”
“For $4,000, you can get out, go home, watch Netflix after trying to murder your ex-girlfriend — are you kidding me?” one of the customers said.
Local law enforcement officials have also expressed their disappointment over Rush’s quick release from custody.
“This particular case seems to be one where the courts have failed this victim,” Thomas Villarreal, head of the Austin Police Association, told Fox 7.
Councilmember Kelly, whose district includes the pub, similarly said Rush “belongs behind bars.”
“This attorney belongs behind bars, pending a lengthy jury of his peers. I’m deeply disturbed watching this video and committed to a safe city,” Kelly tweeted.
Rush has since been fired from the law firm where he had previously worked, the firm confirmed to the New York Post.
In 2017, he was charged with domestic violence after he reportedly choked a woman unconscious in Williamson County. That case was eventually dismissed after Rush completed anger management classes.
