Christopher Taylor, the former Austin police officer who was put on trial twice for fatal on-duty shootings, has sued the Austin Police Department to get his job back.
Taylor was fired in 2024 after he was convicted of deadly conduct after fatally shooting Mauris DeSilva in 2019. He appealed that decision and was acquitted late last year.
After Taylor’s acquittal, the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement reinstated his license to be a police officer. The lawsuit argues the city and APD should reinstate him immediately.
Michael Bullock, president of the Austin Police Association, said the department should have never fired Taylor while his case was on appeal.
“He should have never been terminated,” Bullock said. “He should have been given his job back the moment that his license was reinstated.”
The decision to acquit Taylor, which was made by an Amarillo-based state appeals court, is being challenged by Travis County District Attorney José Garza.
Typically, police officers’ appeals of suspensions or firings play out in administrative courts, but Taylor was convicted, then acquitted, in a criminal court. Suing in a state district court was Taylor’s only option to get his job back, Bullock said.
The city and APD said they were aware of the lawsuit, but it “has not yet been formally served on the City.”
Taylor was also indicted and tried for fatally shooting Mike Ramos in 2020. That case ended in a hung jury. Taylor’s attorneys argued in both cases that he was defending himself and that he acted within APD’s training.