A former U.S. Army sergeant convicted of fatally shooting a Black Lives Matter protester in Austin, Texas during the 2020 riots has been pardoned by Governor Greg Abbott.
Daniel Perry was found guilty last year of murdering Garrett Foster and sentenced to 25 years in prison for the July 2020 killing. However, just days after the conviction, Abbott requested the Texas parole board review Perry’s case for a potential pardon.
On Thursday, the board unanimously recommended pardoning Perry, which Abbott swiftly approved, citing the state’s robust “Stand Your Ground” self-defense laws. Perry was released from prison within hours.
“Texas has one of the strongest ‘Stand Your Ground’ laws that cannot be nullified by a jury or a progressive District Attorney,” Abbott stated, taking a jab at the Travis County prosecutor who brought the murder case against Perry.
The parole board said its unanimous pardon recommendation followed “a meticulous review” of police reports, court records, witness statements and interviews related to the fatal shooting.
At trial, prosecutors portrayed Perry as a racist former soldier who went looking for confrontation amid the 2020 protests, presenting texts where he spoke of shooting looters, which the defense argued were meant as humor. Perry claimed self-defense, saying he feared being shot by Foster, who was carrying an AK-47 rifle.
The pardon has sparked outrage among certain leftist figures, with critics accusing Abbott of giving in to political pressure and setting a “dangerous precedent” that undermines the justice system. Foster’s mother called it another painful moment after her son’s murder.
Perry had driven to Austin for a rideshare job when he encountered protesters. He claimed he was trying to navigate through the crowd when blocked by Foster pointing a rifle at him. The state argued Perry aggressively drove into protesters.