Why Larry Jackson Jr. Matters
Depositions Begin in the Historic Civil Rights Case
On July 26, 2013, Larry Jackson Jr., a 32-year-old-old native of Austin, Texas, was brutally beaten and shot to death by APD Detective Charles Kleinert. A Travis County Grand Jury subsequently indicted Kleinert for Manslaughter and he will go on trial for this crime later this year. Our law firm has the distinct honor of representing Larry’s parents in an ongoing civil rights case against Kleinert and the City of Austin.
This week, we will start taking depositions of City leaders who have knowledge about what happened when Larry was killed. We will be deposing City Manager Marc Ott and Police Chief Art Acevedo. We will also be deposing APD investigators, eyewitnesses, and eventually Charles Kleinert himself.
Why is this case so important?
As recent events have demonstrated, police brutality is a major domestic concern in the United States. We have seen high profile police shooting incidents: Michael Brown in Ferguson, Eric Garner in New York, Walter Scott in South Carolina, Eric Harris in Tulsa, and Freddie Gray in Baltimore.
However, we have yet to see a police officer actually go on criminal trial for a shooting. That changes when the State of Texas v. Charles Kleinert criminal trial starts later this year.
The stakes cannot be higher.
Will a police officer who brutally killed an innocent man actually be convicted? Or will he walk?
Will the elected leaders in the City of Austin take a position in this case? Or will they remain silent?
The answer to these questions will tell us a lot about the state of justice and race relations in both Austin, TX and these United States.
This case has been long and challenging but we will not rest until there is Justice for Larry Jackson Jr.
