The murder happened two months after George Floyd‘s death.
Daniel Perry, a US Army sergeant, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for the murder of a protester at a Black Lives Matter rally in Austin, Texas
Perry killed 28-year-old Garrett Foster, an Air Force veteran, at a racial justice rally in 2020. Perry’s defense team had asked for a 10-year sentence, but prosecutors had requested at least 25 years in prison. Perry shot Foster when the latter approached his car while carrying an assault-style rifle.
Perry’s lawyers argued that his actions were in self-defense, but prosecutors pointed to Perry’s racist and inflammatory social media posts as evidence that he was a “loaded gun ready to go off”. Perry was found guilty of murder by a Texas jury in April, but not guilty of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
He is yet to be sentenced on a charge of deadly conduct
Texas Governor Greg Abbott had asked the Board of Pardons and Paroles to expedite a review of the case and pardon Perry, but the board’s investigation is ongoing. Perry’s legal team praised the governor’s efforts, but Travis County District Attorney José Garza rejected their criticism, stating that the case was rooted in facts and the law.
After the sentencing, Foster’s mother and sister praised the verdict, while his fiancée testified to the impact of his death on her life.
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