Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick cites apparently false claim in supporting Daniel Perry murder pardon
Relying on what appears to be false information, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick says he disagrees with Daniel Perry’s murder conviction in the death of protester Garrett Foster and supports a governor’s pardon that would free Perry from a forthcoming prison sentence.
Patrick made the comments to Fox News on Saturday, a day after a Travis County jury rejected Perry’s assertion that he acted in self-defense when Black Lives Matter demonstrators surrounded his car in downtown Austin and he fired five times at Foster.
The guilty verdict, reached Friday after the jury deliberated for 17 hours over two days, ignited a nationwide debate on who is responsible for the shooting: Perry, an off-duty Army sergeant who drove his car into the crowd, or Foster, a frequent participant at local demonstrations, who approached the car with an AK-47 assault rifle. Gov. Greg Abbott said the killing was justified and announced Saturday that he had instructed the state’s Board of Pardons and Paroles to quickly review the conviction so he can approve a pardon recommendation.
Patrick told Fox News that he agrees with Abbott and supports the pardon request.
“If for some reason because of a preplanned trip Gov. Abbott is not in the state, as acting governor I totally support him. I’ll pardon him as well,” Patrick told Fox News.
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Neither Abbott nor Patrick attended any portion of Perry's trial or reviewed a transcript of testimony, which is not yet complete. The two-week trial was not streamed online, as decided by the judge who presided over the case.
Multiple witnesses who testified during the trial said Foster approached Perry’s car on the driver’s side with a gun. Texas law allows people to carry a firearm in public, but not to use it to provoke a confrontation.
In what was seen as a key point in the trial, the defense and the prosecution sparred over whether the gun was pointed at the ground or in a position that could harm Perry if fired. But Patrick introduced an entirely new argument that was never presented in court.
“He pointed it through the side window right at Sgt. Perry,” Patrick said.
No witness testified that Foster pointed the gun through the car window.
Later in the interview, Patrick said, “If anyone points any rifle, any gun at you through your car window, you have a right to self-defense.”
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The gun’s location is significant, as Perry would be in greater danger and justified in firing his weapon if it were extended at him through the car window, as Patrick falsely claimed.
On Monday, the American-Statesman reached out to Patrick’s office and asked about his comments. His office did not respond.
Patrick neglected to address evidence that legal observers say probably influenced the guilty verdict. Prosecutors presented conversations Perry had with friends on social media and on his phone before the shooting that showed he was angry at protesters, who were organizing rallies in cities throughout the country after the murder of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who was killed by a Minneapolis police officer who knelt on Floyd's neck and wouldn’t get up.
Perry told a friend he might have to “kill a few people on my way to work,” referring to people "rioting" outside his apartment complex. The friend asked if it would be legal, to which Perry replied, “If they attack me or try to pull me out of my car, then yes,” according to evidence presented during the trial.
Perry told a friend he had watched a video of a protester getting shot in Seattle after pulling someone out of a car. He said that since that shooting happened in Seattle the gunman would probably go to prison, but “if it was in Texas he would already be released.”
In the Fox News interview, Patrick referenced allegations made in 2021 by the lead Austin detective in the case who said District Attorney José Garza tampered with his grand jury presentation. The investigator, detective David Fugitt, said in a sworn affidavit that Garza made him remove about 100 slides containing evidence favorable to Perry.
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Fugitt testified at the trial, but, notably, as a witness called by the defense and not the state.
“He should have never been charged with murder. The detective says there is evidence that would have probably never had him indicted,” Patrick said.
A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled. Perry, 37, faces up to life in prison.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Dan Patrick cites false claim in support for Daniel Perry pardon
