A Bexar County judge has stamped out a bid by former SAPD officer James Brennand to move his highly publicized trial out of San Antonio. Brennand stands charged in the 2022 shooting of teenager Erik Cantu, an incident that caught national attention and sparked discussions about police conduct. The defense had claimed an impartial jury would be elusive in Bexar County because of a media onslaught and public statements by officials, as reported by KSAT.
The court’s decision arrived earlier today, with 437th District Court Judge Joel Perez dismissing the motion. Brennand's lawyers had been pushing since last October for relocating proceedings, presenting a hefty binder filled with over 140 pages of news reports to underscore a community bias. However, the judge was not swayed, seemingly agreeing with prosecutors on the depth of the potential juror pool in the county, an argument supported by affidavits from 60 individuals who expressed no prior knowledge of the case, as per information from Express News.
Delving into the facts, Brennand faces charges of aggravated assault by a public servant and deadly conduct, according to KSAT. These stem from an encounter in the parking lot of a McDonald's, where the former officer fired into Cantu's vehicle, believing it to have been involved in an evading arrest case the night prior.
Jury selection is tentatively pegged for mid-November with the trial to unfold in the same county where the shooting was first scrutinized. Nico LaHood, one of the Brennand’s attorneys, voiced his discontent with the ruling, stating, "Every citizen that’s accused of an allegation, any allegation, is entitled a fair and impartial jury," according to Express News. He continued, "We believed that wasn’t going to happen for Mr. Brennand. But obviously we have to deal with the decision."
LaHood portrayed his client as a steadfast individual, ready to confront the legal battle ahead. Brennand maintains a composed demeanor amid the pre-trial preparations, standing by the belief that his actions were justified. LaHood stated, "He's good man," asserting Brennand's service to the community and nation, and expressing confidence that the trial would correct misconceptions influenced by authority figures.
