Editor’s Note: This story’s headline has been changed. Daniel Perry shot and killed Black Lives Matter protester Garrett Foster after accelerating his car into a protest in Austin, Texas, in the summer of 2020. Last month, a jury unanimously agreed that Perry's actions were premeditated and voted to convict. Now, Perry faces life in prison. Following a Tucker Carlson segment shaming Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for not pardoning Daniel Perry, however, Abbott took to social media to vow that he would pardon Perry as "swiftly" as he is able to, making it sound as if the outcome was predestined.
As Hunter explained last month, violence has become a common tool in the GOP’s playbook, with Republicans not only condoning the actions of extremists and murderers but celebrating and applauding their acts of violence. "The GOP is now the party of conscienceless killers," tweeted journalist David Neiwert. "Their platform is to consistently support the ability of men with guns to murder anyone Republicans don’t like."
Abbott is attempting to score cheap political points. However, his promise to pardon Perry offers a staggering contrast between how he responds to right-wing calls to pardon violent vigilantes and bipartisan appeals to pardon Melissa Lucio—a devoted Mexican American mother who was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of her two-year-old daughter and only barely escaped the death penalty just a little more than a year ago.
Sign the petition: Speak out against Gov. Greg Abbott and his attempts to score cheap political points.
If you live in Oklahoma, please sign and send a petition to Gov. Kevin Stitt urging him to grant Richard Glossip a reprieve. We only have two weeks to stop this miscarriage of justice. Click the link to read more and take action.
Republican governors across the country are preparing the unofficial-yet-annual post-Easter influx of executions, a wildly absurd tradition considering Jesus' resurrection was nothing if not a triumph over state-sponsored violence. April 2022 was no different. We were just days away from the state of Texas executing Lucio despite forensic evidence and eyewitness accounts pointing to a tragic accidental death, not homicide.
Capital punishment cases often bring together strange bedfellows, especially when there is any doubt present. In the nine years I've led Daily Kos' death penalty work and the five years I've organized with my statewide abolition group (shout out to Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty!), I've been in community with everyone from the brilliant legal minds at groups like the Innocence Project, to visionary abolitionists, to extremely conservative Christians. Whether we object to capital punishment for legal, moral, faith-based, or other reasons, we become more than the sum of our parts when working together.
Lucio's defense was no different, and our advocacy made a difference. Just two days before she was scheduled to die, an appeals court paused her execution. I still get emotional when thinking about that campaign, forever grateful for those who show up.
While Perry's case offered no nuance—his violent behavior was evident in his tweets just weeks before the murder—Lucio's case was filled with nothing but doubt after her daughter died from complications from an accidental fall. Lucio's conviction came from a seven-hour coercive interrogation on the night of her daughter's death, where police intimidated and pushed her until she agreed, falsely, to take responsibility for some of her daughter’s injuries. The medical examiner who conducted Mariah’s autopsy and then offered unequivocal trial testimony of her supposed guilt, appears to have ignored evidence that pointed toward an accidental death. The defense failed to call witnesses who could have countered the state’s assumptions or offered an alternative explanation.
The list of injustices is staggering, so much so that even the district attorney reportedly shifted his stance and considered intervening on her behalf. Lucio's ordeal was one of these moments when most folks, no matter their political affiliation or profession, agreed. Abbott, however, was noticeably absent.
Yet, when it came to Perry, Abbott took to social media himself to say he would pardon him within 24 hours of his conviction. While noting that the state constitution limited him to a pardon only on a recommendation by the state Board of Pardons and Paroles, he said that he had made the request and urged the board to expedite his request.
Outrageously, even with Lucio's execution date looming, Abbott didn't feel compelled to use his considerable power on her behalf. “It is my understanding that the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles has not provided a decision to me yet,” Abbott told Channel 5 News. “With that being the case, as the law requires, the governor must await for a decision from the Board of Pardons and Paroles.” He went on to say that he would “make a decision once it comes to me,” when asked if he would approve a clemency recommendation from the board.
Lucio's incredible legal team and our relentless advocacy eventually negated the need for Abbott's intervention, as the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals issued a stay of execution just days before Texas would have killed an innocent person.
With Perry, Abbott is emphasizing the message the GOP has been sending all along in their attempts to defend murderers like Kyle Rittenhouse and Jan. 6 insurrectionists, that GOP-sanctioned political violence will time and time again be backed and supported by the Republican Party.
The Republican party forever claims allegiance to the “rule of law” (laughs in "your standard bearer is facing criminal charges") and “cracking down on crime” (or, more accurately, "cracking down on people they don't like"). However, who they support is revealing. No longer satisfied with provoking acts of political violence, the GOP clearly intends to empower and reward them. But when there is an opportunity to correct an egregious wrong, they are suddenly nowhere to be found.
In pardoning Perry, Abbott's message is crystal clear. The Republican Party is now actively engaging in political violence and supporting the murder of those they disagree with. Even in the case of Perry, where a Texas jury unanimously agreed that his actions were premeditated, Abbott is intervening on behalf of an extremist even after refusing to do the same for an innocent woman.
I find myself agreeing with Foster's family: there are no winners in this. At the end of the day, a lot of lives are irrevocably changed. Abbott's political grandstanding only makes all of this that much worse. Some of us are in the business of saving lives. Abbott, for his part, seems to have chosen the business of endangering our families, communities, democracy, and freedoms. He, and everyone like him, must be condemned.
Sign the petition: Denounce Gov. Greg Abbott and GOP-sanctioned violence.
As Hunter explained last month, violence has become a common tool in the GOP’s playbook, with Republicans not only condoning the actions of extremists and murderers but celebrating and applauding their acts of violence. "The GOP is now the party of conscienceless killers," tweeted journalist David Neiwert. "Their platform is to consistently support the ability of men with guns to murder anyone Republicans don’t like."
Abbott is attempting to score cheap political points. However, his promise to pardon Perry offers a staggering contrast between how he responds to right-wing calls to pardon violent vigilantes and bipartisan appeals to pardon Melissa Lucio—a devoted Mexican American mother who was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of her two-year-old daughter and only barely escaped the death penalty just a little more than a year ago.
Sign the petition: Speak out against Gov. Greg Abbott and his attempts to score cheap political points.
If you live in Oklahoma, please sign and send a petition to Gov. Kevin Stitt urging him to grant Richard Glossip a reprieve. We only have two weeks to stop this miscarriage of justice. Click the link to read more and take action.
Republican governors across the country are preparing the unofficial-yet-annual post-Easter influx of executions, a wildly absurd tradition considering Jesus' resurrection was nothing if not a triumph over state-sponsored violence. April 2022 was no different. We were just days away from the state of Texas executing Lucio despite forensic evidence and eyewitness accounts pointing to a tragic accidental death, not homicide.
Capital punishment cases often bring together strange bedfellows, especially when there is any doubt present. In the nine years I've led Daily Kos' death penalty work and the five years I've organized with my statewide abolition group (shout out to Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty!), I've been in community with everyone from the brilliant legal minds at groups like the Innocence Project, to visionary abolitionists, to extremely conservative Christians. Whether we object to capital punishment for legal, moral, faith-based, or other reasons, we become more than the sum of our parts when working together.
Lucio's defense was no different, and our advocacy made a difference. Just two days before she was scheduled to die, an appeals court paused her execution. I still get emotional when thinking about that campaign, forever grateful for those who show up.
While Perry's case offered no nuance—his violent behavior was evident in his tweets just weeks before the murder—Lucio's case was filled with nothing but doubt after her daughter died from complications from an accidental fall. Lucio's conviction came from a seven-hour coercive interrogation on the night of her daughter's death, where police intimidated and pushed her until she agreed, falsely, to take responsibility for some of her daughter’s injuries. The medical examiner who conducted Mariah’s autopsy and then offered unequivocal trial testimony of her supposed guilt, appears to have ignored evidence that pointed toward an accidental death. The defense failed to call witnesses who could have countered the state’s assumptions or offered an alternative explanation.
The list of injustices is staggering, so much so that even the district attorney reportedly shifted his stance and considered intervening on her behalf. Lucio's ordeal was one of these moments when most folks, no matter their political affiliation or profession, agreed. Abbott, however, was noticeably absent.
Yet, when it came to Perry, Abbott took to social media himself to say he would pardon him within 24 hours of his conviction. While noting that the state constitution limited him to a pardon only on a recommendation by the state Board of Pardons and Paroles, he said that he had made the request and urged the board to expedite his request.
Outrageously, even with Lucio's execution date looming, Abbott didn't feel compelled to use his considerable power on her behalf. “It is my understanding that the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles has not provided a decision to me yet,” Abbott told Channel 5 News. “With that being the case, as the law requires, the governor must await for a decision from the Board of Pardons and Paroles.” He went on to say that he would “make a decision once it comes to me,” when asked if he would approve a clemency recommendation from the board.
Lucio's incredible legal team and our relentless advocacy eventually negated the need for Abbott's intervention, as the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals issued a stay of execution just days before Texas would have killed an innocent person.
With Perry, Abbott is emphasizing the message the GOP has been sending all along in their attempts to defend murderers like Kyle Rittenhouse and Jan. 6 insurrectionists, that GOP-sanctioned political violence will time and time again be backed and supported by the Republican Party.
The Republican party forever claims allegiance to the “rule of law” (laughs in "your standard bearer is facing criminal charges") and “cracking down on crime” (or, more accurately, "cracking down on people they don't like"). However, who they support is revealing. No longer satisfied with provoking acts of political violence, the GOP clearly intends to empower and reward them. But when there is an opportunity to correct an egregious wrong, they are suddenly nowhere to be found.
In pardoning Perry, Abbott's message is crystal clear. The Republican Party is now actively engaging in political violence and supporting the murder of those they disagree with. Even in the case of Perry, where a Texas jury unanimously agreed that his actions were premeditated, Abbott is intervening on behalf of an extremist even after refusing to do the same for an innocent woman.
I find myself agreeing with Foster's family: there are no winners in this. At the end of the day, a lot of lives are irrevocably changed. Abbott's political grandstanding only makes all of this that much worse. Some of us are in the business of saving lives. Abbott, for his part, seems to have chosen the business of endangering our families, communities, democracy, and freedoms. He, and everyone like him, must be condemned.
Sign the petition: Denounce Gov. Greg Abbott and GOP-sanctioned violence.