LCSO removed from shooting death suit; sheriff and deputies remain
Justin and Jillian Harrod. Courtesy photo
The Llano County Sheriff’s Office was dismissed as one of five defendants in a federal civil lawsuit brought against the county by the wife of a Kingsland man shot and killed by deputies in 2022.
Judge Robert Pitman made the decision to remove the LCSO as a defendant on July 10 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, Austin Division.
The county, Sheriff Bill Blackburn, and LCSO deputies Byron Cervantez and Randy Shaw are still named in the suit, which was filed in April by Jillian Harrod and claims excessive force was used in the death of her husband, 40-year-old Justin Harrod.
Justin Harrod was shot and killed by Llano County deputies on Oct. 23, 2022, after Jillian Harrod called law enforcement to report her husband was drunk and possibly suicidal. According to the lawsuit, deputies found Harrod passed out facedown in his front yard and lying on top of a gun.
On June 5, Attorney Jason Eric Magee of Allison, Bass & Magee in Austin filed a motion to dismiss the case on behalf of the Sheriff’s Office but not for the county, Blackburn, Cervantez, and Shaw. Instead, the attorney filed answers to the original charges on behalf of the remaining defendants by the same June 5 deadline, denying all claims of wrongdoing.
Jillian Harrod said the Llano County Sheriff’s Office was the only defendant to seek dismissal, but when asked if she would agree to dismiss the other defendants if they filed similar motions, she said, “No, I would not.”
Jillian Harrod v. Llano County et al. is one of five civil lawsuits the county is currently facing. The other four are:
Leila Little et al. v. Llano County et al.—This case involves book banning and is currently before the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, where oral arguments will be heard by the full court sometime during the week of Sept. 23. A three-judge panel recently ruled 2-1 in favor of the plaintiffs.
Suzette Baker v. Llano County et al.—Former Kingsland librarian Suzette Baker sued Llano County on March 4 for wrongful termination. The case is before the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, Austin Division, where the most recent motion was filed on July 10. The motion was Baker’s response to a defense motion to dismiss.
Mirelez v. Llano County et al.—The plaintiff in this case is currently in prison. He missed a final July 9 deadline to file a response to Llano County’s earlier motion to dismiss. Mirelez said he was shot and injured by a non-lethal weapon while surrendering to a SWAT team that included deputies from both Llano and Williamson counties.
“I am hoping the court will take the correct action and grant our motion to dismiss,” said Michael A. Shaunessy of McGinnis Lockridge in Austin, the attorney for the defendants. “We are waiting to hear from the court.”
Pressley et al. v. Nelson et al.—Two Llano residents are involved in this election lawsuit that was filed by five voters in three counties against Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson, members of her staff, and the election administrators in Llano, Bell, and Williamson counties. Motions are flying in the suit, which claims that election practices in these counties could reveal voter identities. The latest motion was filed by the plaintiffs on July 11.