Grand jury clears Houston police officer in unarmed man's shooting death

HOUSTON – A Harris County Grand Jury has declined to indict a Houston police officer in the death of Jordan Baker, an unarmed black man who was shot and killed on Jan. 16.

Jurors reconvened Tuesday and cleared HPD Officer Juventino Castro in the case. The Harris County District Attorney's Office said the grand jury failed to get the nine out of the 12 votes necessary to find probable cause.

"I want to express my deepest sympathies to Janet Baker and the entire Baker family," said Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson. "I know they are disappointed, but the grand jury's decision means they found that there was no probable cause to believe a crime was committed. It does not constitute an endorsement of the officer's actions."

Anderson said they ensure there are no former or current police officers or prosecutors on grand juries.

Civil Rights Chief Julian Ramirez addressed the media at a press conference Tuesday afternoon shortly after the decision was made.

"Let me begin by also expressing my sympathy for the family of Jordan Baker.  This was a tragedy and I'm sorry for their loss and I know this is a difficult time.  This decision only deepens that pain and we regret that," Ramirez said. 

Ramirez said the grand jury that heard the case was a diverse group composed of three African Americans, one Hispanic, one Asian American and seven Anglo Americans.  Of the 12 members, eight were women and four were men.

"While some will undoubtedly criticize their decision, let me say that no one knows more about the facts surrounding the shooting and the law that applied to this case," Ramirez said.

Ramirez said the District Attorney's Office conducted its own investigation, beginning the night of the shooting.  The DA's Office made two additional trips to the scene, including one at night, and obtained and reviewed numerous documents, audio and video recordings, witness statements and photographs. 

"We didn't just take Officer Castro's word for it.  We considered information from as many sources as we had available. But the fact of the matter was, we didn't have any other eyewitnesses  to the shooting that took place in the dark alley," Ramirez said.

Castro was hired to patrol the northwest Houston shopping center as an extra job due to an increase in armed robberies.  Castro said when he saw Baker riding his bicycle in the parking lot on the night of the shooting, he felt Baker met the general description of some of the individuals involved in the armed robberies. He also said Baker appeared to be "casing" businesses, peering into windows, and he wanted to talk to Baker to determine whether or not he was involved.

"When he went to do that, Mr. Baker acted indignantly and a confrontation ensued," Ramirez said. "The officer stated that he was placed in fear by some of Baker's actions; namely by reaching in and out of his pockets.  He [Castro] stated that Baker made physical contact with him and threw his shoulder into the officer's chest."

Castro said after that, Baker ran into the alley behind the Little Caesar's Pizza.  Castro said Baker told him he was not going to jail and charged him while reaching toward his waistband.  Castro said he feared for his safety and opened fire, shooting Baker in the chest.

"There were no eyewitnesses to the shooting other than Officer Castro," Ramirez said, adding that for the most part, there weren't any "glaring inconsistencies" between what the officer described in the front parking lot and what some of the witnesses who were in the front parking lot at the time saw.

Ramirez said findings from the medical examiner also supported the officer's claims.

"The medical examiner who conducted the autopsy on the body of Mr. Jordan Baker told us the gunshot wound was consistent with the officer's version of the shooting.  Witnesses in the front of the building told us that Mr. Baker was acting aggressively, and was agitated and was cursing and moving his hands," Ramirez said. "Let me say that across this country, we are engaged in a national discussion regarding police shootings.  It is incumbent on prosecutors who work  within the system and the media who report on matters of public interest to inform the public about the law that applies in these kind of cases."

In Texas, the intentional killing of another person without a legal justification is murder. Self-defense, when it applies, is a legal justification.

Ramirez said in almost all police shootings, there is no issue as to whether the officer shot the individual.  Whether the shooting was criminal is really a question of legal justification.

"The question for the members of the grand jury was not whether there was probable cause to believe Officer Castro shot Mr. Baker, but whether there was probable cause to believe the officer did not act lawfully in self-defense.  And in answering that question, the grand jury hearing this case was charged with viewing the facts and circumstances from Officer Castro's standpoint."

Jordan Baker's mother was upset with the decision.

"I'm not surprised, I will accept the disappointment," Janet Baker said.

Community activist Deric Muhammad expressed outrage.

"I think we need to shut our mouths about what went down in Ferguson because right now we have proven that not only are we not any better, but Houston, Harris County, is 10 times worse," Muhammad said.

HPD Police Chief Charles A. McClelland issued the following statement:

"We respect the grand jury's decision in this case.  This is certainly a tragic and unfortunate incident for the officer involved and the family of Jordan Baker.  We will continue to evaluate our policies and training in an attempt to prevent these types of incidents in the future.  We are in the process of developing a new foot pursuit policy designed to protect officers and the citizens they encounter.  We place the highest priority on human life and we encourage anyone that has interactions with police to follow and obey the commands and instructions of officers.  There is always a proper place and time to contest your arrest or file a police complaint.  I have forwarded this investigation to the local office of the FBI for its review to ensure there are no civil rights violations."

"When your child leaves and and goes three blocks from home, you expect them to come back," Janet Baker said.

Jordan Baker was 26 years old.