Texas murder-suicide suspect was out on bond despite guilty plea for 2019 killing, records show

HOUSTON -- A man who pleaded guilty to murder in December and was out on bond fatally shot his girlfriend before turning the gun on himself in a murder-suicide, according to Houston police.

A welfare check Thursday morning escalated into a SWAT situation involving the Houston Police Department's robot dog. Upon entering the apartment, Houston police discovered the bodies of Austin Collette, 26, and his girlfriend, whose name has not been released.

Authorities believe Collette fatally shot her before he died by suicide.

Court records show that in December 2024, Collette entered a guilty plea for killing Thomas Simmons during a 2019 drug deal gone wrong.

Despite the severity of the charge and a criminal history dating back to age 12, Collette was allowed to remain free on bond while awaiting sentencing: an extra four months of freedom.

"It's a large stressor event, being charged with felonies," HPD Sgt. Mark Holbrook said at the scene. "It can lead to homicide, suicide, people not thinking clearly, when facing a large stressor event like that."

Collette had been under house arrest for over four years, while awaiting trial, picking up multiple bond violations and a separate felony drug charge along the way. His most recent violation occurred just days ago when authorities lost track of him for 12 hours due to a reported GPS ankle monitor malfunction, allegedly caused by "metal flakes" interfering and preventing the device from charging, court records show.

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Despite this, no action was taken by the court in response to the violation.

Collette's sentencing hearing was scheduled for April 21. He was expected to receive a prison term; probation was not an option.

"It should not have taken nearly this long to prepare a PSI (Pretrial Sentencing Investigation)," KTRK legal analyst Brian Wice said. "It is made up of the offense report, the defendant's version of events and letters of character, and that's it."

Collette's attorney, Kent Schaffer, told ABC Houston affiliate KTRK that it is not unusual for defendants to remain on bond until they are sentenced. However, Wice said, the court, in this case, Judge Hilary Unger, could have revoked Collette's bond, and prosecutors could have filed a motion to detain him in jail after the plea. Neither step was taken, per online records.

"This defendant was not eligible for probation. This defendant was going to the penitentiary. This defendant would not be able to appeal whatever sentence was handed down. What could go wrong?" Wice asked. "What went wrong (Thursday) is that he killed another human being."