Travis County DA faces renewed ‘soft on crime’ criticism after career criminal charged with murder
A Texas-based career criminal with a lengthy rap sheet is behind bars in Travis County after he was charged with murdering a father of five outside a 7-Eleven in Austin, reviving scrutiny of Travis County District Attorney José Garza and what critics call his controversial prosecutorial record and "soft on crime" approach.
Caleb Anthony Jenkins, described by police as a career criminal, was charged with murder in connection with a shooting last year that left a 25-year-old father dead outside a 7-Eleven. According to Austin police, Jenkins allegedly shot the victim and drove off.
But critics argue the killing may have been preventable. Garza’s office previously dismissed or declined to prosecute three separate gun charges against Jenkins in incidents dating back to 2022. He was also arrested in 2023 on a domestic violence charge and failed to appear in court, as Fox News reported. Most recently, he was re-arrested and released after his bond was raised.
Taken together, the developments have intensified public criticism of Garza, the Democratic district attorney backed by liberal mega-donor George Soros,
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Garza, who was elected Travis County DA without prior experience as a prosecutor, has faced criticism from police advocacy groups and victims’ families since taking office. They have accused him of deliberately slow-walking certain cases and embracing lenient sentencing policies.
The criticism has sparked national attention in years past. In 2023, the family of 25-year-old Doug Cantor, who was shot and killed in the 2021 Sixth Street mass shooting in downtown Austin, criticized Garza for slow-walking the trial of the gunman.
Family members told Fox News Digital in an interview at the time that they believed Garza had put the case on the "back burner."
"It's very clear that his focus and attention is not on this case," Nick Kantor told Fox News Digital in an interview reflecting on the two-year anniversary of his brother’s death — and the way Garza, who has been widely criticized for soft-on-crime policies, has handled the case.
"He’s doing things that are clearly causing distress on the trial and on the overall outcome of the case and for getting justice for my brother," Kantor said.
Other victims’ families cited similar behavior from Garza’s office in interviews with Fox News Digital.
While overall reported crime in Travis County has declined, opponents argue dismissal rates have been "political," and could further endanger public safety.
It "appears that Garza has now become more of an advocate for the criminal than he has for the victim," Dennis Farris, president of the Austin Police Retired Officer's Association, previously told Fox News Digital.
"The prosecution is acting more like defense attorneys than they are prosecutors," Farris said in an interview roughly one year after Garza took office. "Whatever his skewed view of what criminal justice reform is, it isn't working. It sure isn't working for the victims."
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"It used to be that they got the victims' buy-in before offering plea bargains. Now it doesn't appear he's even doing that, because they're not even communicating with them, and that's what's leading to the revictimization of these families."
Current and former local law enforcement officers have criticized Garza's actions and his alleged "war on cops," after the Soros-backed district attorney campaigned on indicting police officers and "reimagining" policing in Austin.
Soros contributed $652,000 to the Texas Justice & Public Safety PAC in the months leading up to the 2020 Travis County DA election, according to campaign finance records.
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That same PAC spent almost $1 million on digital and mail advertisements to help Garza’s campaign, as Fox News reported.
The Travis County District Attorney’s Office did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.