This is an update to a story El Tejano first reported on October 29.

https://www.eltejanorgv.com/testimony-starts-in-austin-trial-over-six-deaths-in-2023/

Shane James is on trial in Austin for capital murder. He is accused of killing six people. It was a shooting spree in Austin and San Antonio on Dec. 5, 2023.

His lawyers say he was legally insane. They say he is not guilty by reason of insanity. That means a severe mental illness kept him from knowing right from wrong then.

Prosecutors call witnesses in the order of the shootings. First was Sgt. Val Barnes of the Austin school district police. He was the first person shot in Austin that day.

On Monday and Tuesday, jurors saw police video. It shows officers arrest James on State Highway 45 in southwest Austin. He had crashed his car.

In the video, James answers the officers' questions. One officer asks if he is seeing or hearing things that are not there. James shakes his head "no." Officers said he seemed aware of what was going on.

Defense lawyer Michael Watson made a point. A person who sees or hears things that are not there may think they are real.

Jeffrey Short testified on Monday. He is the husband of Katherine Short and father of Lauren Short. They were killed at home in the Circle C neighborhood.

Short said his doorbell camera app showed a man kick in the back door. That was between 6:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. He called his wife. She did not answer.

Jurors heard his two 911 calls. In one he said, "Someone kicked in my back door. My wife and daughter are still at home."

A cyclist shot nearby also took the stand. The judge did not allow video or audio of that.

On Wednesday, the medical examiner told of the Shorts' injuries. Jurors also saw James' police interview on video.

An Austin detective asked James about his parents. They had been found dead in San Antonio earlier that day. The detective said James told him he did not know if they were OK. James did not think police needed to check. The detective also said James tried to escape from the Travis County Jail the next day.

Prosecutors showed letters James wrote to another inmate. In them, he wrote of voices that told him to hurt other people. The defense said the letters were dated June 2026. James was getting mental health care at the jail then.

Court resumes Thursday morning. There is no verdict yet.

Everyone is presumed innocent until proved otherwise.