AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Austin Police officer Christopher Taylor was sentenced Tuesday to two years in prison following his conviction on a deadly conduct charge for his role in a 2019 police shooting in downtown Austin.
Taylor is widely believed to be the first police officer tried and convicted in connection to an on-duty deadly shooting in Travis County, and now is the first to be sentenced to prison for that conviction.
Defense attorneys have already filed an appeal in the case. While that process plays out, Blazey ruled that Taylor will be released on an appellate bond.
Taylor's sentence comes after a Travis County jury found him guilty in October of the charge in connection with the death of Mauris DeSilva in a downtown Austin condo complex. The 46-year old DeSilva was experiencing a mental health episode at the time of his conflict with police; he was holding a knife at the time he was shot.
Under state law, deadly conduct is a third-degree felony charge that carries a sentence between 2 and 10 years in prison, and up to a $10,000 fine.
Defense attorneys argued that Taylor had no choice but to use deadly force against DeSilva. During sentencing, defense witnesses included several members of Austin Police leadership, including former police chief Brian Manley. Manley testified that an internal investigation into the DeSilva shooting had found that Taylor had not violated the department's internal use of force policies.
Current APD chief Lisa Davis, who took over the department earlier this year, has said the department is reviewing its policies and training based on the Taylor verdict, in an effort to prevent putting officers in a similar situation in the future.
Taylor was originally charged with murder in this case, but that charge was downgraded prior to trial. Another APD officer who shot DeSilva during the incident, Karl Krycia, is also facing charges of murder and deadly conduct. A trial date for Krycia has not been set.
Prosecutors have said they will not retry Taylor in another case, involving the 2020 death of Michael Ramos. Taylor had faced a murder charge in that case, but two mistrials were declared, including a jury deadlock in October 2023. Earlier this year, a Travis County grand jury no-billed Taylor in the case.