Austin DA requests reversal of Daniel Perry pardon

The district attorney in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday asked a state appeals court to overturn Gov. Greg Abbott’s (R) pardon of Daniel Perry, a convicted murderer who has become a political pariah among conservatives.

Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza said at a press conference that he asked the court to overturn Perry’s pardon “to restore the sanctity of the rule of law in this great state.”

Perry was convicted last year of murdering Black Lives Matter protester Garrett Foster after Perry drove his car into a protest in downtown Austin and shot and killed Foster, who was armed. Foster claimed self-defense, but prosecutors prevailed, arguing that Perry had sought the confrontation.

He was sentenced to 25 years in prison for murder.

After Perry’s conviction last year, Abbott said he would pardon him if a pardon was recommended. The Texas Parole Board made that recommendation last month, and Abbott quickly implemented the pardon.

Garza Condemned The committee’s recommendations and Abbott’s promise of amnesty in a statement last month.

“The commission and the governor have put politics above justice and made a mockery of our legal system. They should be ashamed of themselves,” Garza wrote. “Their actions are against the law and demonstrate that there are two classes of people in this state: those for whom life matters and those for whom it doesn’t.”

“They sent a message to Garrett Foster’s family, his partner and our community that his life does not matter,” he continued. “To Garrett Foster’s family and friends and the people of Travis County, we will not stop fighting for justice.”

Following the pardon, a group of 14 Democratic attorneys general from across the country called on the Justice Department to pursue federal hate crimes charges to keep Perry behind bars, an effort Garza said he supports.

Governor Garza’s petition, written by Texas Department of Public Integrity Director Holly Taylor, asks the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals to overturn Governor Abbott’s pardon, arguing that he exceeded his authority.

Perry’s lawyer, Doug O’Connell, said: He told the Austin American-Statesman The demands are nothing more than “political theater.”

“The executive branch’s pardon power is a well-established constitutional power,” O’Connell told The Statesman. “I wonder whether Taylor, who was recently sanctioned by the Travis County Court for violating the Michael Morton Act (destruction of evidence), will be able to persuade the Court of Criminal Appeals with a novel theory that challenges the Texas Constitution.”

The Hill has reached out to Abbott’s office for comment.