An Uber driver has been sentenced after fatally shooting a Black Lives Matter protester in 2020.
Earlier today (May 10), a Texas judge handed down 25 years in prison to 36-year-old Daniel Perry, USA Today reported. His sentencing comes after he was convicted of murder in connection to the death of Garrett Foster.
On July 25, 2020, Perry was working in Austin when he drove through a red light and turned into a BLM march. According to his conversation with police, Foster allegedly approached his vehicle holding an AK-47. In return, Perry said he shot the 28-year-old five times before driving away.
Local prosecutors asked the judge for at least 25 years the day before his sentencing, while the defense requested 10, the outlet noted. The prosecutors argued Perry initiated the incident by running the light, aware of demonstrators marching. They also said he posted racist comments and memes insulting Black people on social media.
In 2020, the senseless killings of several Black people at the hands of cops and other races reignited the BLM movement. On Feb. 23, 2020, 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery was murdered by three white men. His death was considered a racially motivated hate crime, and all suspects were found guilty and sentenced.
In March 2020, millions nationwide were devastated to learn about Breonna Taylor, an EMT. At 26, she was shot by Louisville officers while asleep during a botched drug raid. There have been no convictions thus far in her case.
In May 2020, a Minneapolis officer killed George Floyd after he was suspected of using a counterfeit bill. When police arrived, Floyd was arrested and placed on the ground. A bystander recorded as then-cop Derek Chauvin held his knee of Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes, killing him. After his death, hundreds of thousands across America flooded into their cities’ streets to protest the senseless killings of Black people. A few years later, Chauvin and his former officers on the scene were found guilty and sentenced.