AUSTIN, Texas — Austin criminal justice advocates are asking the Travis County district attorney to adopt a "no call" policy.
In a letter addressed to District Attorney Margaret Moore Nov. 25, organizations such as the Texas Fair Defense Project, the Austin Justice Coalition and the Texas Freedom Network called on her to adopt the policy.
The policy would stop prosecutors from issuing charges or pursuing cases that rely on the word of officers who are found to be biased or dishonest.
The groups advocating for this change said there's a growing list of Austin police officers with a history of bias, racism and misconduct.
The letter gives an example of a case they believe was unjust.
Former Austin police officers Robert Pfaff and Donald Petraitis were seen on body camera video at a 2018 scene in Downtown Austin. The video shows a witness to a shooting being shocked with a Taser while he was kneeling with his hands in the air.
The City of Austin settled a lawsuit filed by the Taser victim in October. The two officers were fired after the incident but were found not guilty for their actions.
The letter sent to Moore said that her office "failed to convict them, despite video evidence clearly demonstrating [Quentin] Perkins on the ground."
The officers are now seeking reinstatement to the force.
“The brutality Quentin Perkins suffered at the hands of Officers Pfaff and Petraitis is not only about excessive force; it is also about corruption,” the groups said in their letter. “These officers lied to their supervisors and they lied about it in their reports.”
The groups said in the letter to Moore that now is the time to "protect your prosecutions from the taint of officers who abuse their power and violate the public trust."
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