TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — The family of a Border Patrol Agent shot and killed 14 years ago, thought the killers were locked away in prison. But now an appeals court has thrown out one of the convictions.
It was remote desert near Rio Rico where border bandits shot and killed Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. Seven went to prison for the murder but now an appeals court has thrown out one conviction
Ralph Terry is Brian Terry’s uncle he says when the family learned of the court decision: “We were just shocked. The whole family was shocked. It's been 14 years since Brian was murdered, and we still haven't put that behind us. It's been gratifying that each of the participants in Brian's murder has been convicted, put behind bars, and now we have one that's been overturned.”
But Brian Terry’s uncle says Brian enforced the law, his family has faith in the rule of law, and has the hope Heraclio Osorio-Arellanes will be re-tried and found guilty again.
Brian Terry was part of an elite tactical unit assigned to stop rip crews—bandits who attack and rob other border crossers to steal their drug loads. Prosecutors say Heraclio Osorio-Arellanes was in a rip crew that got in a firefight with Brian Terry’s team.
The extra twist was that the rip crew got its guns from our Federal Government. An Obama-era operation called Fast and Furious was designed to track guns headed to the cartels, but lost track of thousands of weapons.
“It allowed some of the cartels to have weapons that were more sophisticated than what our border patrol people were using out in the field. Mean, Brian's team had shotguns with beanbags, you know. And the people that murdered him had AK 47 type weapons.”
Seven members of the rip crew got sentences ranging from 50 years to life. But a Federal appeals court just threw out Osorio-Arellanes conviction. He basically confessed when US agents questioned him in a Mexican jail. But two of the three appeals judges agreed he had legal advice so poor he did not know what he was doing when he talked.
Ralph Terry says, “When he pulled that trigger aimed at Brian, he knew what he was doing. So to tell me now that you didn't understand what was going on, it's a technicality that he's trying to get off on, and we believe the courts will retry him and keep him in jail.”
Ralph Terry says 14 years after his nephew died, Border Patrol agents are overwhelmed and the border’s out of control.
The family has a foundation in Brian Terry’s name to support Border Patrol families and offer scholarships to students who want a career in law enforcement.
KGUN9 asked the US Attorney’s office handling the case if it plans a re-trial. As of late Monday there’s been no response but Federal prison records show Osorio-Arellanes is still in custody.