Texas Governor Greg Abbott has requested the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to examine the case of Army Sergeant Daniel Perry.
Perry was convicted of murder by a Travis County jury last week, stemming from a 2020 shooting incident during protests over police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s death.
Perry was convicted in connection with a July 25th, 2020, shooting that killed one protestor. Perry was driving for Uber through downtown Austin when he drove into a large crowd just a few streets from the Texas Capitol.
He encountered 28-year-old Air Force Veteran Garrett Foster, who legally carried an AK-47-style rifle at the protest. Witnesses dispute who raised a firearm first, but both men drew weapons before Perry shot and killed Foster.
The defense argued that Perry acted in self-defense, but a jury convicted him of murder and deadly conduct.
The prosecution pointed to Perry’s social media posts and communications with friends in the days before the incident.
In them, Perry allegedly suggested he was looking for an opportunity to perpetrate violence against Black Lives Matter’s rioters.
In June 2020, Perry reportedly suggested he would take the law into his own hands in a text to a friend.
“I might have to kill a few people on my way to work, they are rioting outside my apartment complex.”
He also suggested driving to Dallas to fight protestors in another text.
“I might go to Dallas to shoot looters.”
Perry also posted similar messages on his various social media accounts.
These messages apparently gave prosecutors the evidence they needed to convince the jury of Perry’s guilt.
Perry was facing up to life in prison, but outrage from commentators who claim that Perry’s actions were in self-defense prompted Abbott to weigh in.
Fox News host Tucker Carlson, in particular, called the decision a “legal atrocity” and asked Abbott to come on his show and explain if he was considering a pardon for Perry.
Other conservatives with sizable platforms, including Kyle Rittenhouse, also encouraged the governor to consider a pardon.
“[T]his is a[n] unfair conviction please step in and free Daniel Perry,” Rittenhouse wrote on Twitter, addressing Abbott.
Rittenhouse himself was acquitted last year of multiple charges, including two counts of murder, following a similar incident during tense protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in 2020. A jury found that Rittenhouse had shot three men, two fatally, in self-defense.
Governor Abbott weighed in the next day, announcing that he was asking the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to investigate the shooting further.
Abbott also highlighted Texas’ “Stand your Ground” laws, which carve out broad authority for citizens to defend themselves with deadly force if they face physical harm.
“Texas has one of the strongest “Stand Your Ground” laws of self-defense that cannot be nullified by a jury or a progressive District Attorney,” Abbott claimed.
Conflict over the prosecutorial discretion of district attorneys has become a major political flashpoint in Texas and nationwide.
Abbott pointed out in his tweet that the Texas Constitution limits the governor’s authority to issue pardons. However, the governor can request that the Board of Paroles and Pardons examine a pardon.
Travis County District Attorney Jose Garcia responded to the governor’s request:
“In a state that believes in upholding the importance of the rule of law, the Governor’s statement that he will intervene in the legal proceedings surrounding the death of Garrett Foster is deeply troubling.”
Garcia also apparently claimed that jury decisions are not subject to the authority of the governor through the Board of Paroles and Pardons.
“In this case, a jury of twelve listened to testimony for nearly two weeks, upending their lives to painstakingly evaluate the evidence and arguments presented by both the State and the Defense. After hearing from civilian eyewitnesses and expert witnesses, and deliberating for over fifteen hours, they reached the unanimous decision that Daniel Perry did not kill Garrett Foster in self-defense and was guilty of murder beyond a reasonable doubt. I thank them for their service and want them to know that their service and the service of every juror matters. In our legal system, [it is] a jury that gets to decide whether a defendant is guilty or innocent — not the Governor.”
Daniel Perry’s sentencing is set for Tuesday at 9:15 a.m.
