AUSTIN, Texas — An Austin Police Department (APD) officer who shot and killed Michael Ramos will not be on trial for murder this week after all.
KVUE’s senior reporter, Tony Plohetski tweeted “a mistrial has been granted in the case of Austin police officer Christopher Taylor amid allegations of potential jury tampering and the inability to seat a jury.”
This decision comes after a week of jury selection, during which there were several hurdles throughout the week including the courtroom door was locked, travel interference with potential jurors and “mysterious envelopes” that were found on two potential jurors’ cars.
This whole trial stems from a report about a possible drug dealing in the parking lot of a southeast Austin complex in April 2020. The caller told police that a man had a gun, however, police did not find a weapon. Multiple APD police officers responded to the complex where they say Ramos did not obey their commands, prompting them to use bean bag rounds on him.
Ramos then got into his car and started driving, Taylor opened fire.
The shooting led to a local outcry and calls for justice, amid ongoing outrage over the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza released a statement on the mistrial declaration:
“Our hearts go out to the Ramos family, who have to wait even longer for the trial of Christopher Taylor. Due to the release of Monday’s jury panel because of a constitutional violation, the parties were not able to select a jury this week. The judge will reset the case to a future date, and the state will be ready to try the case then.”
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