Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott pardoned an Uber driver on Thursday for shooting and killing a Black Lives Matter (BLM) protester who was brandishing an AK-Style rifle during a riot in July 2020.
U.S. Army Sgt. Daniel Perry was handed down a 25-year prison sentence after being found guilty of murder in April 2023, even though the main detective believed the shot was carried out in self-defense.
Following Perry's conviction, Abbott promised to pardon him, and in an announcement on Thursday, he declared that he had accepted the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles' recommendation for a full pardon.
“The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles conducted an exhaustive review of U.S. Army Sergeant Daniel Perry’s personal history and the facts surrounding the July 2020 incident and recommended a Full Pardon and Restoration of Full Civil Rights of Citizenship,” said Governor Abbott.
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“Among the voluminous files reviewed by the Board, they considered information provided by the Travis County District Attorney, the full investigative report on Daniel Perry, plus a review of all the testimony provided at trial. 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. I thank the Board for its thorough investigation, and I approve their pardon recommendation," said Abbott.
On July 25, 2020, during a protest against police brutality in downtown Austin, Sergeant Daniel Perry, who was working as an Uber driver at the time, encountered a group of demonstrators.
According to the police, Perry stopped his car, honked at the protesters, and then drove into the crowd. In the ensuing chaos, Perry fatally shot Garrett Foster, a 28-year-old Air Force veteran who was openly carrying an AK-47 rifle.
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After a lengthy trial, a Travis County jury found Perry guilty of murder, rejecting his claim of self-defense under the state's "stand your ground" law.
The jury also acquitted him of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Perry was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles conducted a thorough review of the case, examining police reports, court records, witness statements, and conducting interviews with individuals connected to the incident.
After this exhaustive investigation, the board unanimously recommended a full pardon for Sergeant Perry, citing the strength of Texas' self-defense laws and the evidence presented at trial.
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