TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas — A judge has denied a motion to move the trial of Austin Police Department officer Christopher Taylor out of Travis County.
The judge's move follows arguments made by Taylor's attorneys on Thursday, according to a report from KVUE's news partners at the Austin American-Statesman. The attorneys argued the trial should be moved to a different county.
Taylor faces a murder charge for the 2020 death of Michael Ramos. Taylor shot Ramos while responding to a call about an armed man doing drugs in a car. When officers arrived, they found Ramos, who they say wasn't being compliant.
Officers shot Ramos with a bean bag round before he tried to drive away. That's when Taylor fired, killing Ramos.
Police never found a weapon on Ramos nor in his car.
In July, the KVUE Defenders obtained a "change of venue" motion regarding Taylor's trial. That came after the first attempt at a trial in May resulted in a mistrial. Some of the main problems were widespread knowledge about the case and flyers about the case that were left on the cars of potential jurors.
The presiding judge on Thursday said she would make a decision about the trial venue on Friday. A legal expert told the Statesman that trials have rarely been moved out of Travis County.