Defense Attorney Nico LaHood speaks with his client, former San Antonio police officer James Brennand, after a court hearing on March 20, 2024. Prosecutors on Monday dismissed the charge against Brennand.
Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News
Erik Cantu. 21, was shot by former San Antonio Police Officers James Brennand in 2022.
Bexar County Sheriff’s Office
The Bexar County District Attorney’s Office has dismissed the charges against former San Antonio police officer James Brennand in the shooting of Erik Cantu, citing the need for more investigation after new allegations have emerged against Cantu.
Brennand, 31, faced a charge of aggravated assault by a public servant in connection in the shooting of Cantu, who was 17 in October 2022 when the officer shot him outside a North Side McDonald’s.
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The case made national headlines and led to protests in San Antonio, with community groups calling it an example of police misconduct, although then-Police Chief William McManus fired Brennand within days of the shooting.
Brennand had faced up to life in prison if convicted of the charge.
Brennand was scheduled to go to trial next week, but prosecutors on Monday asked state District Judge Joel Perez for a continuance after they learned Cantu was under investigation by police related to new allegations made against him.
Prosecutor Neil Cordero told the judge that they learned Cantu was under investigation after a woman filed an incident report on July 1 alleging Cantu threatened her. No charges have been filed, but Cordero told Perez that he and his co-counsel needed more time to prepare in light of the new information.
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Cantu was expected to be the key witness against Brennand during the trial, and Cordero said the new allegations could create a problem for the prosecution and could have led to a mistrial.
“The state of Texas would be at a great disadvantage in proceeding to trial with this investigation pending over our main complainant,” Cordero said, referring to Cantu. “Under Texas rules of evidence, certain portions of this investigation may become relevant in this trial and could be used against Erik Cantu in this trial as impeachment,”
Defense attorneys Nico LaHood and Jason Goss told Perez that they would invoke Brennand’s right to a speedy trial, noting that it has been four years since the original incident.
“Erik Cantu’s inability to quit being investigated by the police should not interfere with Brennand’s right to a speedy trial and due process. Their complainant will not stop committing crimes,” Goss said. He agreed the defense team would use evidence from the latest allegations to impeach Cantu.
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Perez denied the motion for continuance, and the district attorney’s office followed by dismissing the charges against Brennand.
In a written statement, the district attorney’s office said after the judge denied the motion for continuance, the office decided to dismiss the case.
“The purpose of the motion was to allow us time to properly investigate and assess the implications of this new development and its potential impact on the current case against James Brennand,” the district attorney’s office said. “As a result of the judge’s ruling in denying the motion, we decided to dismiss the case due to the pending investigation.”
The district attorney’s office said it could refile the case following completion of the investigation in to Cantu. They declined additional comment.
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“This should have happened a long time ago because James is innocent,” Goss said following the dismissal.
Shooting in 2022
Brennand was 27 and had been on the job for just seven months when he encountered Cantu in the parking lot of the restaurant in 2022.
Brennand told investigators he thought Cantu’s BMW was the same car and driver that had evaded him the previous night. At the time, police said the car’s license plates didn’t match the vehicle, which led them to believe it was stolen.
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SAPD later determined the vehicle had not been stolen.
According to reports, Brennand called for backup and approached the BMW with his gun drawn. He did not identify himself as a police officer, but opened the driver’s side door and told Cantu to “get out of the car.”
Police said that Cantu, who had his girlfriend with him, reversed the vehicle several feet and struck Brennand’s leg, though Cantu’s attorneys have disputed those assertions.
Cantu drove his vehicle toward the exit of the parking lot, and Brennand fired at least 10 shots at the BMW, four of which struck Cantu. The woman who was with him was not injured.
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Cantu was in the hospital for nearly two months after the shooting, and at one point was on life support.
He suffered injuries to his abdomen, diaphragm, lungs, liver and arms. Three of the bullets were removed from his body, but a fourth one remained lodged near his heart, attorneys said at the time.
The story made national news and his parents hired civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who represented the family of George Floyd, to represent them.
Latest allegations
Cantu, 21, has been arrested six times since the 2022 shooting involving Brennand.
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In the latest incident, a woman Cantu was dating alleges that she became angry after Cantu told her he was “sleeping with other women when he met her,” according to a police incident report. The woman then allegedly threw her bag of food at Cantu.
She told police Cantu told her, “I could just strangle you right now, but I’m tryna (sic) be a changed man,” according to the report.
The woman told police that Cantu began to drive, took out a pocketknife and mentioned something about a gun. She told him she wanted to go home, but he refused. When she pressed him that she wanted out of his vehicle, Cantu allegedly told her to jump out while it was moving or her would push her out. She told police they went to a gas station and Cantu told her to get out of the vehicle before “I kick your ass,” according to the report.
The woman said he left her stranded and she had to contact an Uber to take her home.
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The woman told police that she never saw a firearm, and that Cantu did not display the knife in a threatening manner.
Most recently, Cantu received two years of deferred adjudication on a charge of burglary of a habitation after his then-girlfriend accused him of stealing her iPad. He took a plea as jury selection was to begin in that case.
As part of that agreement, Cantu was prohibited from driving. It is unclear how the latest incident report could affect his supervised release.
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