The Travis County district attorney's office filed a writ of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday arguing that the Supremacy Clause should not apply to the 2013 Charles Kleinert police shooting case.
The D.A.'s office filed a writ of certiorari in an effort to bring criminal charges against Kleinert for the 2013 shooting of Larry Jackson. The writ argued that the Supremacy Clause, a federal statute that granted protection to Kleinert in the shooting, should not apply to this case.
Kleinert, a former Austin police detective, said his gun accidentally discharged during a struggle with Jackson in 2013. Jackson was unarmed.
Kleinert was indicted by a Travis County grand jury on a manslaughter charge in the shooting. Kleinert successfully argued in 2015 that he was working as part of an FBI task force at the time of the shooting. A federal judge ruled he is entitled to special protection from prosecution under the Supremacy Clause, which grants immunity from state prosecution to officials performing a federal function.
On April 20, 2017, the DA's office appealed the decision and argued that Kleinert was employed by APD and not the feds. However, a three-member panel of the Appeals Court in New Orleans affirmed the 2015 decision to dismiss the manslaughter charge.
The 152-page document details the shooting and argues that the 2015 ruling "impairs State sovereignty and will cause States to reassess their participation in important joint State-federal law-enforcement initiatives."
"The District Attorney's Office remains firmly committed to seeking the fair administration of justice in this matter, as well as clarity regarding the immunity granted by the court in this matter," Moore's office said Wednesday.
In July, District Attorney Margaret Moore announced that Travis County hired former Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The U.S. Supreme Court will now decide whether to hear or rule on the case.
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