Read about Daniel Perry’s previous murder trial and the state’s push for a pardon here.
On October 22, a jury in Texas found reactionary Daniel Perry not guilty of a misdemeanor charge of deadly conduct in connection with the murder of Garrett Foster which he carried out.
Foster was actively serving the people in the struggle against police terror after the killing of George Floyd when Perry shot and killed Foster on July 25, 2020, during a protest in downtown Austin.
The recent verdict is the second time ruling class justice has aided Perry in escaping accountability. In May 2023, a judge sentenced Perry to 25 years in prison after a jury found Perry guilty of murder. Following this, ultra-reactionary Texas Governor Greg Abbott pushed for a full pardon, which the state granted in May 2024.
In 2025, the Travis County Attorney’s office pursued a misdemeanor charge of deadly conduct, which could carry a jail sentence of up to a year, as a symbolic attempt to prosecute Perry for driving his vehicle into the Austin march before he shot Foster.
The bourgeois justice system facilitated the six-person jury’s not-guilty verdict by prohibiting the mention of Perry’s conviction for murdering Foster as part of the prosecution’s case.
Even if found guilty, Perry would likely have seen no jail time due to his previous time served as part of his 2023 conviction for murder.
In Facebook comments used as evidence in the cases, Perry made his plan to shoot at and drive into protesters clear, writing, “I will only shoot the ones in front and push the pedal to the metal.”
The nullification of both cases against Perry demonstrates the lack of real justice for the people from bourgeois courts. As The Worker stated in a previous article on Perry, “The only time the system will ever convict the agents of White Terror is when it is forced to by the organized people.”
Image: Daniel Perry. Credit: Austin, Texas, Police Department.
The Worker is an entirely volunteer-run revolutionary newspaper free from and radically antagonistic to corporate influence. We rely on the support of our readers to sustain our editorial line in service of the working class and the reconstitution of its party, the Communist Party. Make a one-time or recurring donation to our newspaper today:
Make a one-time donation
Make a monthly donation
Make a yearly donation
Choose an amount
Or enter a custom amount
Your contribution is appreciated.
Your contribution is appreciated.
Your contribution is appreciated.
