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Army Sergeant Gets 25 Years for Killing BLM Protester

Gov. Greg Abbott had vowed to pardon Daniel Perry, 35, who claimed he acted in self-defense.

A U.S. army sergeant who killed a Black Lives Matter protester in 2020—and was subsequently promised a pardon by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott—was sentenced to 25 years in prison Wednesday. After a jury found Daniel Perry, 35, guilty of murder in early April, Abbott took to Twitter vowing to urge the Board of Pardons and Paroles to pardon Perry, citing Texas’ “Stand Your Ground” laws. Perry claimed self-defense, telling police that Air Force veteran Garrett Foster—who was legally carrying a semi-automatic rifle at the Austin demonstration—aimed the barrel at him before he shot Foster with a handgun. However, court filings revealed that Perry had fantasized about killing Black Lives Matter protesters, and had described himself in private messages and social media posts as a proud racist. At the time of Perry’s conviction, Travis County District Attorney José Garza described Abbott’s meddling in the case as “deeply troubling.”