On November 3, a parolee with an ankle monitor allegedly murdered a man and was arrested shortly thereafter by Dallas police, according to the department’s news release.
The shooting incident occurred at approximately 4 a.m. in the 10000 block of Audelia Road. Dallas Fire-Rescue responded, but the victim, Brian Dillard, died at the scene.
According to police, Zeric Jackson is suspected of shooting and killing Dillard, 39, at his girlfriend’s Lake Highlands apartment.
At the time of the incident, reports say that the woman was taking a shower. Yet Jackson, 36, was apparently placed at the scene via his ankle monitor, which he had been fitted for after his release on parole.
Jackson was convicted of aggravated robbery in 2005 and had served 17 years of an 18-year prison sentence before being released on May 6 of this year. He received an FI-1 parole vote from the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.
Jackson’s conviction would mark the third Dallas homicide in which the suspect was released from prison and given an ankle monitor in less than two weeks.
His arrest comes after Nestor Hernandez, another monitored parolee, was taken into custody and charged with capital murder after he allegedly gunned down two hospital employees at Dallas Methodist Hospital on October 22, as reported by The Dallas Express.
In an interview with local news station WFAA, Dallas Police Chief Eddie García declared that there needs to be more accountability for felons convicted of violent crimes.
“Accountability is something that is our biggest hurdle in policing,” García said. “If you feel like a violent criminal needs an ankle monitor to enhance accountability, that’s not it.”
The Dallas Express reached out to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles for comment and additional information about how the board denies or grants parole.
“When an individual is convicted of a felony and sentenced to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, convictions for certain offenses are by law eligible for parole consideration. The Board of Pardons and Paroles does not determine parole eligibility or the amount of time required to be served before becoming eligible for consideration, that is done by statute,” the email read.
“The decisions that are made by a parole panel are discretionary based on the totality of information. Most cases are decided by a parole panel of three, where a simple majority is needed to grant or deny parole. Certain cases by law require the full board to vote to release, in which case, 5 out of 7 board members must vote to release,” the email continues. “Once an individual is eligible for parole consideration, a parole panel looks at all information prior to rendering a decision to parole or deny release.”
It goes on to explain that the factors considered include, but are not limited to:
- Nature/seriousness of the offense(s)
- Sentence length/amount of time served
- Criminal history
- Number of past incarcerations
- Support/protest Information
- Past periods of parole/probation
- Institutional adjustment while incarcerated
- Age of offender at the time of the offense and currently
“If granted parole, oftentimes there is a requirement to complete some form of programming prior to release. If an offender is denied parole, a next review date is set within the timeframes established by statute,” the email concluded.