(UnitedHeadlines.com) – Travis County, Texas District Attorney José Garza is appealing the pardon of Daniel Perry by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
On June 4, Garza filed a petition against Abbott’s pardon, arguing Perry’s case did not meet the requirements to receive a pardon and that Abbott’s action interfered with a lower court’s ruling. Garza also asked for the chance to present an oral argument to make their case. Garza is unsure how the highest criminal court in Texas, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which consists of nine elected Republican judges, will rule.
Perry was convicted of murdering Garrett Foster, 28, seen in a video pointing an AK-47 at Perry, during a July 2020 Black Lives Matter protest for George Floyd in Austin, Texas. Prosecutors allege Perry, an active-duty U.S. Army sergeant at the time, sought out the confrontation, while Perry claimed he shot Foster, a U.S. Air Force veteran, in self-defense. Perry was convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Less than 24 hours after Perry’s sentencing, Abbott requested the seven-member Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to expedite an investigation into the conviction and make a recommendation regarding pardoning Perry as Abbott can only issue a pardon if the board recommends. The board recommended Perry receive a pardon, and in announcing the pardon in May, Abbott accused Garza of focusing on “reducing access to guns” instead of ensuring Perry’s right to self-defense was protected.
Perry’s attorney, Doug O’Connell, called Garza’s filing on June 4 “political theater” in a post on social media.
On June 4, Garrett Foster’s mother, Sheila, said the family would fight “until we get justice for Garrett.”
Garza is not the only one attempting to overturn Abbott’s pardon. Fourteen attorneys general from across the country, including New York Attorney General Letitia James, called for the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate if Perry’s actions violated Foster’s civil rights.
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