Today, Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare released the following statement following the dismissal of charges against police officers linked to the Jan. 2019 Harding Street raid. 

“Today the Harris County District Attorney’s Office dismissed 17 charges against 8 Houston Police Department officers associated with the Harding Street raid,” said Teare. “The decision was made after a thorough review of the facts clearly demonstrated that there was insufficient evidence to prove that any of these crimes were committed beyond a reasonable doubt.

Nothing about these dismissals changes the fact that the Harding Street raid should have never happened. As the chief law enforcement officer of Harris County, I want people to know that we remain steadfast in our commitment to uncovering and addressing corruption wherever it may be found – but we will always be guided by the facts, not politics.

These charges were kept on life-support by the previous District Attorney to generate headlines, damaging the reputations of the officers and the Houston Police Department, and they inevitably fell apart under the weight of the truth. As District Attorney, I am determined to pursue real justice instead of using the lives of innocent public servants to score political points.

These officers and their families have endured four years of hardship, forced to live under a cloud of suspicion and accusations of corruption. Despite the lack of evidence, they were subjected to an investigation designed to wrongfully link them to the very real, heinous crimes committed by Gerald Goines.”