Governor says shooting was justified under state's 'Stand Your Ground' self-defense law
Release date: May 18, 2024 18:21
A man looks at a gun at an exhibit booth at the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual convention in Dallas, Texas, on Friday. The state's governor pardoned a man convicted of killing a Black Lives Matter protester. The latter was also armed with a semi-automatic AK-47, which is legal to carry in public under Texas law. (Photo: Pewters)
Texas' governor has granted a full pardon to a former U.S. Army sergeant who was convicted of murder and sentenced to 25 years in prison for shooting a Black Lives Matter protester in 2020. .
In his proclamation, Republican Greg Abbott cited the state's “Stand Your Ground” self-defense law, one of the most powerful measures in the country.
The proclamation of pardon comes shortly after the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole unanimously recommended clemency and reinstatement of firearms privileges for Daniel Perry after an investigation conducted at the request of the governor.
Perry, 37, was arrested in April 2023 for the death of Garrett Foster, a 28-year-old U.S. Air Force veteran who was shot at a Black Lives Matter rally in the state capital Austin in July 2020. was convicted of murder.
The demonstrations came amid a wave of protests across the United States against racial injustice and police brutality following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in May of the same year. It was conducted.
Perry claims he acted in self-defense when he shot Foster, and when Foster pointed a semi-automatic AK-47 (legal to carry in public under Texas law) at Perry, he fired a handgun. He claimed he had no choice but to do so. . Perry, like Foster, is white.
According to media reports about the incident, Perry drove his car that night in Austin and rammed his Uber car into a road where protesters were marching, putting the crowd at risk of being assaulted by Perry's car. It is said that he made him believe that there was.
At trial, both sides presented conflicting accounts of whether Foster pointed the gun at Perry.
In his proclamation, Abbott said the jury's verdict effectively “nullified” the state's “Stand Your Ground” self-defense law. This law removes a person's obligation to retreat from an unprovoked threat of violence before using deadly force if the person has a right to be there.
Mr Perry's lawyer, Doug O'Connell, said the pardon would “correct the travesty of the court” over his client's conviction and said Mr Perry was “excited and elated to be freed”. added.
“Daniel Perry was incarcerated for 372 days and lost the military career he loved,” O'Connell said in a statement, as reported by Austin television station KXAN. “We will fight to have Daniel's military service rating upgraded to honorable discharge.”
Foster's fiancée, Whitney Mitchell, responded in a joint statement with her mother, calling the pardon a “devastating blow that reopens deep wounds,” according to KXAN.
Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza, a Democrat who brought the case against Perry, accused the parole board and the governor of “putting politics before justice and making a mockery of our legal system.”
The parole board did not provide a specific reason for its recommendation, but said it “thoroughly investigated the complexities” of Perry's case, including reviewing police reports, court records and witness statements. Ta.
