Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Tuesday pardoned a former U.S. Army sergeant who was convicted of murder in the fatal shooting of an armed Black Lives Matter demonstrator in 2020.
Daniel Perry, who had been sentenced to 25 years in prison by an Austin jury for the July 2020 shooting of BLM protester Garrett Foster, has since been freed from prison.
New: Texas governor Greg Abbott has granted a full pardon to U.S. Army Sergeant Daniel Perry, who was convicted at trial of murdering an armed BLM rioter in 2020 in Austin. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles also recommended restoring Perry's gun rights. Read:… pic.twitter.com/1rfLVp2ISv
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) May 16, 2024
The governor said in a statement that he signed Perry’s pardon following a unanimous recommendation from his state’s parole and pardon board.
"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," Abbott said.
My statement regarding the pardon of Sgt. Daniel Perry. pic.twitter.com/t7UMWdeOV2
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) May 16, 2024
Abbott added: “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.”
Far-left Travis County District Attorney José Garza slammed the pardon in a comment obtained by NBC News.
When taking on Abbott and the parole and pardon board, Garza categorized the pardon as a class issue.
"Their actions are contrary to the law and demonstrate that there are two classes of people in this state where some lives matter and some lives do not," the DA said in a statement.
"They have sent a message to Garrett Foster’s family, to his partner, and to our community that his life does not matter."
Foster was filmed in a viral interview on the evening he was killed while legally armed with a rifle in downtown Austin.
WARNING: The following video contains language that some viewers might find offensive.
I didn't know Garrett Foster and I wish he were alive. But the left is portraying him as a hero who just wanted justice and was peacefully marching. He was interviewed earlier in the night and asked why he was carrying and AK47.
He was carrying for a reason.
h/t @stillgray pic.twitter.com/qp9OJG8PbN
— Joe Pags Pagliarulo (@JoeTalkShow) July 26, 2020
Foster said he was protesting racial injustice two months after George Floyd’s death in the custody of police in Minneapolis, which sparked nationwide riots.
“I think all the people that hate us… are too big of p*****s to actually do anything,” the young man said at one point after he was asked while he was openly carrying a gun that appeared to be an AK-47.
Later that evening, Perry encountered the armed Foster and a group of others and after an altercation, he shot and killed the Air Force veteran.
Perry was later convicted of murder.
