ACCOUNTABILITY

Austin Cop Charged With Murder in Shooting Death of Unarmed Man

The officer, Christopher Taylor, was indicted by a Travis County grand jury for killing Michael Ramos, a Black and Hispanic man.

An arrest warrant charging an Austin, Texas police officer with murder has been issued by the Travis County Sheriff’s Office after the shooting death of an unarmed man, according to The New York Times. Officer Christopher Taylor responded to a 911 call last April after a caller reported that a man with a gun was sitting in a nearby parked car. Taylor and several other officers approached the man, 42-year-old Michael Ramos, and ordered him out of his vehicle. Ramos complied, but got back into the car after being hit in the thigh with a “less lethal” round fired by one of Taylor’s fellow officers. As Ramos started slowly driving away, Taylor allegedly fired three rifle rounds at Ramos, killing him. Ramos was unarmed, Austin police later said. At a protest after the tragic incident, Ramos’ mother said of Taylor, “Why isn’t he in jail? I need your help. We must get justice for Mike.” Taylor’s attorneys said they will release a statement Thursday.