All articles tagged with #christopher taylor
An appeals court in Austin has overturned the conviction of police officer Christopher Taylor, who was previously found guilty of deadly conduct in the 2019 shooting of Mauris DeSilva, ruling that the shooting was justified based on the circumstances and evidence presented.
A jury was unable to reach a decision on whether Austin police officer Christopher Taylor committed murder in the 2020 shooting of Mike Ramos. The hung jury is a setback for the Travis County District Attorney, who may pursue another trial. Taylor, one of seven officers who responded to a call about drug use, shot Ramos as he attempted to flee. The case gained attention during racial justice protests following the murder of George Floyd. This is the second mistrial in the case, and if retried, Taylor could face up to 99 years in prison. A conviction would be rare, as police officers are seldom prosecuted for fatal on-duty shootings, let alone charged with murder.
In the trial against Austin Police Officer Christopher Taylor, who is accused of murdering Michael Ramos, questions have been raised about bias in the investigation conducted by the Austin Police Department's Special Investigations Unit (SIU), which included Taylor's uncle as a supervisor. Prosecutors highlighted the special treatment Taylor received after the shooting, including being left alone with his uncle, who was also his "peer support officer." Defense counsel claims the uncle was recused from the investigation, but prosecutors intend to present evidence that he maintained a supervisory role. Additionally, it was revealed that Taylor's defense attorneys were allowed to view video evidence without their client present, deviating from SIU's standard procedure.