Convicted Killer, Former Officer Roy Oliver Sent To Prison In Huntsville
HUNTSVILLE, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) - Roy Oliver, the former Balch Springs police officer convicted of murder, has been taken to prison by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to start serving his 15-year prison sentence.
Oliver was released from the Dallas County Jail and turned over to authorities at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice James "Jay" H. Byrd Unit in Huntsville, Texas early Monday morning.
After convicting Oliver for the April 2017 murder of Jordan Edwards, 15, jurors sentenced Oliver to 15 years in prison on August 29.
Dallas County District Attorney Johnson said she had become close with the Edwards family and says she wished Oliver had gotten more time in prison but she respects the jury's decision and is appreciative of the murder conviction.
An Edwards family spokesperson thanked the DA's office for having "the courage to take on a bad police officer." He said, "We would have liked a greater sentence but we respect the jury."
Oliver faced five years to life in prison.
"Keep in mind, we love our police," said Johnson. "However, we do not support bad apples and we say to people like a Roy Oliver, if you go out and hurt anybody, we're going to prosecute people like that."
Oliver's legal team said they gave notice of appealing the verdict Wednesday night, suggesting there were errors in the trial.
Mothers Against Police Brutality released the following statement after the sentencing:
"The sentencing of Roy Oliver on a conviction of murder in the killing of Jordan Edwards should have been approached with the same seriousness as the guilt/innocence phase of the trial. Unfortunately, the sentence Oliver received is not at all commensurate with his crime."
