Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Pardoned a Murderer Because Politics
Daniel Perry should still be in prison, but too many American prioritize politics over principles.
America appears to be in a season in which one can literally get away with murder, as long as they have the right politics. Not only that, folks will even cheer a murderer’s actions as long as they align politically with the perpetrator.
This might sound like hyperbole, but Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to pardon Daniel Perry for murdering Garrett Foster, who was protesting police brutality, shows that I’m right.
Daniel Perry was serving a 25-year prison sentence for the murder of Garrett Foster, an armed protester attending a protest against police brutality with his fiancée in Austin, Texas. Foster was legally carrying an AK-47 rifle when he was shot by Perry, who claimed self-defense. The jury, however, found Perry guilty, believing he had sought out the confrontation.
I covered the details of the case here and highlighted information that right-wing influencers left out when defending Perry’s actions.
Governor Abbott faced significant pressure from conservative media figures and right-wing pundits, including former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, to pardon Perry. Abbott's rationale for the pardon was Texas' strong "Stand Your Ground" laws. In a statement, Abbott emphasized, "Texas has one of the strongest self-defense laws, and the conviction of Daniel Perry was a travesty of justice."
Tony Plohetski, an investigative reporter for KVUE and the Austin-American Statesman, highlighted the unusual nature of the pardon, noting that the Texas State Parole Board, whose members are appointed by the governor, unanimously recommended the pardon.
"While the parole and pardons board issued a statement saying they had done a meticulous review, what was absent was any sort of legal rationale in terms of recommending that the governor issue this pardon," Plohetski said during an interview with PBS.
The decision has elicited strong reactions from various quarters. Whitney Mitchell, Foster's fiancée, expressed her dismay through her attorney, stating, "With this pardon, the governor has desecrated the life of a murdered Texan and U.S. Air Force veteran and impugned that jury's just verdict. He has declared that Texans who hold political views that are different from his and different from those in power can be killed in this state with impunity.”
She’s not wrong. That is exactly what happened here.
Sheila Foster, Garrett Foster's mother, also voiced her anguish, saying, "My son is never going to have justice now, and I can't live with that. He deserved so much better than what he's getting.” Foster's family and supporters argue that Perry's actions were premeditated and that his social media posts prior to the shooting, which included statements like "I might have to kill a few people on my way to work," indicated his intent.
There was also a conversation Perry had with one of his friends in which he indicated that he planned to put himself in a situation where he could shoot a protester and then claim self-defense.
But even more revealing was a conversation he had with a friend named Michael Holcomb, in which he seemed to suggest that he might get away with killing someone if he could claim it was self-defense. The prosecution showed a Facebook Messenger chat that took place two weeks before the incident in which he “argued that shooting protesters was legal if it was in self-defense,” according to the report.
Holcomb, in an attempt to talk Perry down, asked, “Aren’t you a [concealed carry license holder] too?”
He continued: “We went through the same training … Shooting after creating an event where you have to shoot, is not a good shoot.”
On the other side, Perry's attorney, Doug O'Connell, defended the pardon, stating that key evidence was not presented to the jury during the trial. He mentioned a video reenactment that the Pardon Board reviewed, which he claims shows Perry had reasonable fear for his life. "This video evidence that was not admitted in trial shows that a bullet from an AK-47 easily goes through a soft skin car door," O'Connell said. "It's very, very reasonable for [Perry] to have perceived that barrel was pointed at his body, and he only had fractions of seconds of time to react."
However, while speaking with police after the shooting, Perry himself debunked a myth spread by his defenders: That Foster aimed his rifle at the assailant. While speaking with detectives, he said, “I believe he was going to aim at me. I didn’t want to give him a chance to aim at me,” which suggests Foster was not aiming his firearm at Perry at the time.
Critics argue that Abbott's pardon sets a dangerous precedent and undermines the jury's decision. Tony Plohetski remarked, "This pardon stands very distinct in that Daniel Perry has only been in prison a little more than a year. Over time, the governor has issued precious few of these pardons, usually doing so at the end of the year and for nonviolent offenders.”
Billy Binion from Reason pointed out the politics behind Abbott’s decision, drawing parallels between Perry's case and other self-defense cases that have polarized public opinion. Binion noted, "To argue that Perry—who, prior to killing Foster, wrote that he wanted to 'shoot the [protesters] in the front and push the pedal to the metal'—acted in self-defense is to make a total mockery of that right and those who've had to exercise it.”
This is the crux of the matter. This is not about self-defense; the evidence shows that Perry not only instigated the situation by driving his vehicle into the crowd that Foster was in, he also knew his victim was not threatening him.
But let’s put the shoe on the other foot. What if Foster had been marching with a MAGA hat on to protest against those demonstrating against police brutality? What if Perry had taken the same action, but was on the left?
There is absolutely no way in hell that Abbott would have pardoned him, and everyone knows it, even if they refuse to admit it.
This is a clear example of what hyperpartisanship brings, which is why I constantly warn against it. The Team Sports mentality many Americans have these days has made them willing to excuse horrific acts as long as they are committed by someone who espouses the same political beliefs.
This is not exclusive to the right by any stretch of the imagination. We can remember how folks on the left, who claim to oppose police brutality, all of a sudden became “Back the Blue” when a Capitol police officer murdered Ashli Babbitt during the Jan. 6 riot.
When Americans prioritize politics over principles, it will inevitably produce horrible results. It has caused many to lose, or abandon, their sense of humanity. At some point, we as a nation must realize that looking at every situation through a political lens is only going to blind us to what’s right and wrong. Hopefully, this will happen sooner rather than later.
Protesters with weapons lose my sympathy
And this is where you lose me 🖕🖕🖕 GFY