In a press conference Monday afternoon, Dallas District Attorney Faith Johnson announced a Dallas County grand jury issued a murder indictment against former Balch Springs police officer Roy Oliver. He is charged in the killing of 15-year-old Jordan Edwards on April 29. Oliver also four counts of aggravated assault of the four other teenagers in the car with Edwards. Oliver was fired from the police department earlier this spring. He also faces road rage charges in a separate incident where he reportedly threatening two individuals with a gun. The judge elected to not increase his bail and Oliver is free on a $700,000 bond.
“An announcement I believe will impact Dallas, and I believe our nation,” Johnson proclaimed at the beginning of a press conference held announcing the grand jury’s decision. She promised to vigorously try the case, but would not discuss specifics of the investigation for the ongoing case.
Johnson also dismissed any suggestion, when asked if the presence of Rep. Helen Giddings and other elected officials, combined with her “personal guarantee” comments if this was somehow a political statement.
“It is not a political statement, it is a right statement, it is a fair statement. A just statement,” according to Johnson.
The family of Jordan Edwards stood by Johnson during the press conference but declined to make any comment. Johnson denied any suggestion negotiations are underway to allow Oliver to plead guilty to lesser charges. She stated several times an intention to “vigorously prosecute this case,” later amended it to “cases” because of the other charges brought against Oliver.
The tragic death of Edwards, by all accounts a well-liked, smart young man, with no criminal history, led to demands for justice for Edwards at a Mother’s Day Protest this spring. Also, the family and others reportedly met with Dallas D.A. Johnson. NDG’s Senior Columnist Ed Gray pointed out the Dallas district attorneys have never convicted a cop of murder in a shooting which occurred while on duty.
The announcement of these indictments breaks from the trend seen around the country of the cops accused of shooting unarmed black males, frequently was not indicted by a grand jury, or indicted for lesser charges. This contributed to a lack of confidence in the justice system, starting with the grand jury process. This led to calls for transparency. While progress remains to be made, during the 84th Texas Legislative session in 2015, lawmakers passed House Bill 2150 which led to a change how grand jury members were selected. Transitioning from what many referred to as a “pick-a-pal” method of empanelling grand jurors with the random selection method.
Texas Organizing Project, a statewide community activist organization, issued the following statement:
“Today’s indictment of Roy Oliver in the murder of Jordan Edwards is long overdue. It was completely inexcusable for Oliver to shoot his rifle into a moving vehicle that was traveling away from him and another officer. We need a shift in how law enforcement agencies across the country train and hold their officers accountable.
The issuing of this indictment further serves as a reminder that racially-motivated police violence has no place in Dallas County. On a daily basis, Black and Brown residents throughout Dallas County face verbal and physical abuse, and potentially lethal violence, at the hands of officers who have not been trained to deal with their implicit biases against people of color, especially Black men.”
“This to me is the first step to healing this community and hopefully rebuilding the community,” D.A. Johnson said during a press conference this afternoon. She stated her office has done what no one district attorney in the state or the nation has done by “issuing an arrest warrant prior to the immediately just like we would do in any other case,” according to Johnson.
