Part of President-elect Donald Trump’s Election 2024-winning platform included providing police with total immunity from prosecution of accusations of wrongdoing. Trump pushed this position by saying he wanted to free police to “do their job,” which Trump has expressed on multiple occasions includes engaging in what laws on the books deem to be illegal, over-the-edge acts of brutality and violence.
The recent not-guilty verdict handed down in the case of former Harris County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Garrett Hardin, on trial for the murder of Roderick Brooks, reveals that Trump’s push for total immunity comes in a reality where the vast majority of the Black and Brown general public already believe police operate with such immunity. Why? Because they are rarely found guilty in cases involving charges of abuse.
REACTION TO VERDICT
When jurors recently returned a not-guilty verdict in the Hardin murder trial surrounding the 2022 killing of Brooks, there were tears and shouts coming from both sides of the aisle. There was so much noise—rejoicing from Hardin supporters and shock and horror from Brooks’ contingent of family and community activists—that the judge had to verbally demand quiet.
“Today’s verdict is a devastating blow not only to the family of Roderick Brooks, but to everyone who believes in justice and accountability,” said Sadiyah A. Evangelist-Karriem, legal representative of the Roderick Brooks family. “The decision to acquit Sgt. Garrett Hardin, despite overwhelming evidence of excessive and unreasonable force, leaves the family angry, hurt and questioning the integrity of our justice system. Roderick Brooks was robbed of his life, and today, his family has been robbed of the justice they deserve.”
CASE HISTORY
Hardin was accused of killing Brooks while responding to a shoplifting call on FM 1960. Hardin claimed it was self-defense because Brooks grabbed his taser as they wrestled on the ground.
The jury’s three-and-a-half-hour deliberation produced a not guilty verdict and words shared by defense attorney Justin Keiter that echoed the chorus heard all too often by family members of Black and Brown individuals on the wrong side of police violence.
“Thank goodness police can do their job safely in a dangerous area and have a jury back them up and tell them, ‘We understand how dangerous the streets of Harris County are, we understand you did something you didn’t want to do,'” said Keiter, who was so overcome with joy at the verdict he broke down in tears.
BROOKS’ FAMILY OUTRAGE
Tears of anger and generational outrage at that same verdict were expressed by Brooks’ family and supporters.
“We have contended from the jump that Officer Hardin was not reasonable in his use of force and we have all the evidence that we gleaned from this trial that we’re going to use in our civil case,” said attorney Justin Moore who is representing the family in a civil lawsuit.
Brooks’ family called his killing an execution after seeing the bodycam video weeks ago.
“We want the world to know Roderick was executed,” said Demetria Brooks-Glaze, Roderick Brooks’ sister. “We seen him get executed.”
Police were called, in 2022, to the scene at FM 1960 because Brooks was accused of stealing shampoo before Hardin arrived and shot and killed him.
“Shoplifting does not warrant to kill a man,” Brooks-Glaze said. “Anybody can put themselves in our shoes. If it was your loved one, your sister, your brother, your daughter, your son had their face pushed in the hot concrete, and you can answer that question yourself. How would you feel?”
Of the roughly 1,000 fatal police shooting that happen each year, less than 2% of officers involved are ever arrested, much less go to trial. And of that miniscule number who do end up in court, few, roughly 5%, are found guilty. And this is without the total immunity Trump is promising officers regardless of their actions or what charges of abuse are levied against them.
“We are profoundly disappointed that this verdict fails to hold Sgt. Hardin accountable for his actions. This decision serves as a painful reminder that even in the face of undeniable wrongdoing, the scales of justice do not always balance. The family will not let this injustice pass quietly. They will continue to seek every avenue for accountability and change, for Roderick and for every family affected by police violence,” said Evangelist-Karriem. “Community effort for a guilty verdict failed but we must continue to battle those who have no love for Black Lives Matter.”
