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Texas' 7th Court of Appeals has acquitted former Austin Police Department Officer Christopher Taylor, who had previously been convicted in connection with an on-the-job shooting and sentenced to two years in prison.
"This case comes down to a single, unavoidable question: When an elevator door opens to reveal a man holding a knife who turns toward officers and advances, may an officer reasonably believe deadly force is necessary to prevent an imminent murder? The jury concluded no. The record and the governing law compel the opposite," the opinion declared.
"Following a plea of not guilty, Appellant, Christopher Taylor, was found guilty by a jury of deadly conduct by discharging a firearm," the court noted. "We reverse and acquit."
Left: Christopher Taylor; Right: Travis County, Texas, District Attorney Jose Garza. (IMAGN/Getty Images)
Taylor was sentenced to two years in prison after being convicted of deadly conduct, after originally being charged with murder in the shooting death of 46-year-old Mauris DeSilva in 2019.
DeSilva was in the midst of a mental health episode, walking around an apartment complex, threatening to harm himself and holding a knife to his throat, when he failed to drop the knife after being instructed by officers to do so.
Taylor and another officer opened fire during the incident, while another officer shot a taser, according to the background section included in the appeals court decision.
"In 2019, Appellant, then an Austin Police Department officer, and three fellow officers responded to a 911 call at a downtown Austin condo building. A resident, Mauris DeSilva, had been seen roaming the halls with a knife to his throat and threatening suicide," the document explains.
Austin police officer Christopher Taylor listens during his sentencing hearing at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center on Tuesday Dec. 3, 2024. (Jay Janner/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
"Bodycam footage showed that when the elevator doors opened, DeSilva was facing a hallway mirror with the knife at his throat. He turned and approached the officers. They had not designated a single officer to issue commands, and all four shouted orders, including ‘show me your hands’ and ‘drop the knife'," the document says.
"DeSilva lowered the knife to his side but continued forward. Almost simultaneously, the taser officer fired, and the two officers with drawn weapons fired as well. Appellant fired five shots, and the other officer fired twice. DeSilva died at the scene," the document notes.
"Appellant was indicted for deadly conduct with a firearm and pleaded not guilty, asserting self-defense and defense of others," the document noted, adding that a jury found Taylor guilty and a court sentenced him to "two years' imprisonment."
Fox News Digital previously spoke to members of the law enforcement community in Austin who said that Taylor’s prosecution represented a malicious targeting of police officers by Travis County's progressive district attorney, José Garza.
In response to Taylor's conviction being overturned this week, Austin Police Association President Michael Bullock said the appeals court decision "once again shows that District Attorney Jose Garza manipulated the criminal justice system by repeatedly trying cases against Detective Taylor, until the jury pool was so tainted that an impartial decision could not be made."
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"Thankfully, the 7th Court of Appeals saw through this and did their part by reversing and acquitting Detective Taylor," the union leader said. "They showed that Travis County and District Attorney Garza cannot create their own version of justice deviating from and manipulating state law, while also ignoring police practices."
The union leader called on Garza "to immediately drop all remaining charges against Austin Police Officers related to his political attacks."
"The men and woman of the Austin Police Department must be allowed to do the job they signed up for, protecting the citizens of Austin and the State of Texas, without fear of these countless political prosecutions," Bullock said, adding, "With this ruling, the madness must end, and common sense must prevail."
Taylor's trial attorney, Doug O'Connell, hailed the decision to overturn the conviction.
Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza poses in front of the Austin skyline in a portrait from the county website. (Travis County DA Website)
"We are deeply grateful for the 7th Court of Appeals’ decision to overturn the conviction of Detective Chris Taylor and enter a judgment of acquittal in his case. Detective Taylor should never have faced prosecution for defending himself and his fellow officers against a man who threatened them with a knife. The use of force in this incident was both legal and authorized under the circumstances," he said in part of the lengthy statement.
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Garza has long faced criticism from law enforcement for an alleged "war on cops" after the Soros-backed district attorney campaigned on indicting police officers and "reimagining" policing in Austin. Soros contributed $652,000 to the Texas Justice & Public Safety PAC in the months leading up to the 2020 Travis County DA election, according to campaign finance records. That same PAC spent almost $1 million on digital and mail advertisements to help Garza’s campaign.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Travis County District Attorney's Office for comment on Taylor's conviction being overturned but did not immediately hear back.
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