{"id":375197,"date":"2026-07-16T07:36:31","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T07:36:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/375197\/"},"modified":"2026-07-16T07:36:31","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T07:36:31","slug":"ex-san-antonio-cops-assault-charge-dismissed-after-complainant-comes-under-criminal-investigation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/375197\/","title":{"rendered":"Ex-San Antonio cop’s assault charge dismissed after complainant comes under criminal investigation"},"content":{"rendered":"

BEXAR COUNTY, Texas \u2014 A former police officer\u2019s felony assault case<\/a> has been dismissed after the complainant came under criminal investigation, KSAT reported. <\/a><\/p>\n

Former San Antonio Police Department officer James Brennand was charged with aggravated assault by a public servant in the 2022 shooting of Erik Cantu<\/a>.<\/p>\n

| RESOURCE: Choose the right real-time policing model for your agency<\/a><\/p>\n

During the incident, Brennand saw Cantu\u2019s vehicle in a McDonald\u2019s parking lot and believed it matched a vehicle that had evaded him the night before. A discrepancy with the vehicle\u2019s plates also led him to believe it was stolen.<\/p>\n

He opened the driver\u2019s side door and instructed Cantu to get out, without identifying himself as an officer, San Antonio Express-News reported<\/a>. According to police reports, Cantu then reversed, striking Brennand in the leg. Cantu\u2019s lawyers have disputed that account.<\/p>\n

Brennand then fired 10shots at Cantu, striking him four times. He was fired days after the incident. <\/p>\n

At the time of the shooting, Brennand had served as an officer for seven months, according to San Antonio Express-News.<\/p>\n

In Bexar County\u2019s 437th Criminal District Court on July 13, prosecutors appealed for a delay in Brennand\u2019s trial after Cantu came under a new criminal investigation, KSAT reported. <\/p>\n

Cantu had been convicted in a 2025 burglary case and was sentenced to deferred adjudication on June 8. He was not required in that sentence to serve any further jail time. <\/p>\n

However, a separate July 1 criminal complaint allegedly revealed that Cantu violated the terms of his probation for the June 8 sentence. Cantu has not yet been charged in that incident, which remains under investigation, according to documents obtained by KSAT. <\/p>\n

Prosecutors in Brennand\u2019s case requested a delay following the investigation into Cantu, who would have been the key witness in their case against Brennand. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe the Court should continue (delay) this case because, at this time, the State of Texas would be greatly disadvantaged in proceeding to trial with this investigation pending over our named complainant,\u201d Prosecutor Neil Cordero said.<\/p>\n

Defense attorneys, however, successfully argued that Brennand\u2019s right to a speedy trial would be ignored if the state\u2019s request was granted. The judge denied the prosecution\u2019s request to delay, and the prosecution dismissed the case. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe state doesn\u2019t have the same due process rights as the defendant (Brennand), especially when their complainant (Cantu) continually and will not stop committing new offenses, new crimes or alleged new offenses or new crimes,\u201d said Brennard\u2019s co-defense attorney Jason Goss.<\/p>\n

The Bexar County District Attorney\u2019s Office said prosecutors requested the delay to assess how the investigation into Cantu could affect the case against Brennand. After the judge denied the request, prosecutors dismissed the case but said it could be refiled once the investigation is complete, according to KSAT.<\/p>\n

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\"Ohio<\/p>\n

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\n House Bill 251 requires police to obtain a warrant for a drone search when a warrant would otherwise be required for an in-person search, with several exceptions\n <\/p>\n

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\"ICE<\/p>\n

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\n The policy shift is temporary while officers undergo additional vehicle stop training tactics\n <\/p>\n

July 14, 2026 01:26 PM<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00b7\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"poster.jpg\"<\/p>\n

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\n The Oakland County deputy used a trash can beneath the window to reach the children; He was then able to help the boys through the window and lower them to the ground\n <\/p>\n

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\"Screenshot<\/p>\n

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\n The video shows a traffic stop of former Clark County sheriff and current Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo in an incident where an officer said he failed to stop at a red light\n <\/p>\n

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\"First<\/p>\n

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\n The recognition highlights the wipe\u2019s innovative approach to presumptive fentanyl surface detection and its potential value for professionals working in high-risk safety environments\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BEXAR COUNTY, Texas \u2014 A former police officer\u2019s felony assault case has been dismissed after the complainant came…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":375198,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[82,84,83],"class_list":["post-375197","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-antonio","tag-san-antonio","tag-san-antonio-headlines","tag-san-antonio-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/375197","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=375197"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/375197\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/375198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=375197"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=375197"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=375197"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}