Garrett Foster's mom says she's been robbed of 'overdue peace' after son's killer Daniel Perry gets pardon

Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.

AUSTIN, TEXAS: The mother of a man slain at a Black Lives Matter protest stated on Friday, May 17, that the pardon granted by Texas Governor Greg Abbott to her son's killer, an Army sergeant, has robbed her of "long overdue peace."

Sheila Foster has expressed her distress following the announcement by Abbott that he would pardon Daniel Perry, who was convicted last year for the murder of 28-year-old Air Force veteran Garrett Foster.

Sheila Foster claims to have health issues since her son's death

The governor requested that the Board of Pardons and Paroles take up Perry's case and on Thursday, May 16, Abbott granted the pardon to the Army sergeant, who was serving a 25-year sentence.

Abbott signed the proclamation following the board's unanimous recommendation on Thursday to pardon Daniel Perry. Not long afterward, Perry was released from prison.

“We finally got a trial and we finally got justice, we finally got long overdue peace, and then the governor ripped it right from under us,” Sheila Foster said. “My life has been hell the last four years,” NBC News reports.

Sheila Foster claimed that since her son's passing, she has shed forty pounds and developed cervical cancer, which has been made worse by the anxiety she felt over whether her son's killer would be let out of jail.

“I’ve been sick ever since the governor announced his plans to pardon,” she said. “There’s not been a single week where I have been healthy every day.”

How was Garrett Foster killed?

In downtown Austin on July 25, 2020, Garrett Foster was part of a protest group against police brutality and racial injustice following the death of George Floyd when Perry almost drove into the group.

When Foster approached Perry, who was still in his car, legally brandishing a semiautomatic rifle, Perry shot Foster dead with a handgun. Foster had pointed the rifle at Perry, he told the police, and he had acted in self-defense.

Sheila Foster stated that her son participated in the march to pay tribute to Floyd, a Black man who was killed by a Minnesota police officer in May, and also to safeguard the protesters.

“I feel like I’m living in a nightmare that I can’t wake up from, and I haven’t been able to grieve for my child like a normal person,” she said.

Sheila Foster says Governor Greg Abbott should be removed from office

Jose Garza, the district attorney for Travis County, declared on Thursday that he disapproved of Perry and the Board of Pardons and Parole's rulings.

“Their actions are contrary to the law and demonstrate that there are two classes of people in this state where some lives matter and some lives do not,” Garza said in a statement. “They have sent a message to Garrett Foster’s family, to his partner, and to our community that his life does not matter.”

Sheila Foster expressed her opinion that Abbott ought to be ousted from office.

“I will spend the rest of my life making sure that happens,” Foster said. “This is so corrupt and it’s all a political circus.”

She mentioned how much she misses Garrett and how happy memories of him, like the day he brought home baby ducks from a creek, bring her joy.

"He grew up an animal lover with birds, dogs, lizards and snakes," she explained, noting that she purchased a bird for emotional support following his passing.