Murder suspect now accused of assaulting officer while behind bars
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- An El Paso man accused of murder is facing another charge of assaulting a public servant.
Moises Galvan has been held in the El Paso County Jail for more than six years.
He was arrested on Jan. 29, 2017, accused of shooting and killing R.J. Franco outside a bar in east El Paso.
Galvan claimed the shooting was in self-defense.
His murder trial ended in a mistrial in 2019.
As ABC-7 reported in Nov. 2022, the Texas 8th Court of Appeals denied Galvan's attempt to get his murder charge dismissed.
ABC-7 has obtained the affidavit detailing this latest charge against Galvan, who is now 25.
According to the document, Galvan assaulted an El Paso County Sheriff's Office detention officer on Jan. 27, which happens to be days before the 6th anniversary of Galvan's arrest.
The document states the detention officer was checking on a cell block where the inmates are on lockdown. The officer said Galvan -- who was waiting nearby to return to the lockdown cell block -- asked him, "Why are you f*****g with me?"
The officer told Galvan he wasn't, and then he walked into the cell block to check on the other inmates.
That's when the officer said Galvan followed him and punched him in the face.
The officer managed to get Galvan onto the ground, and other officers helped him restrain Galvan soon after.
ABC-7 spoke with the district attorney's office about this latest charge and Galvan's murder case.
District Attorney Bill Hicks said the assault charge will be handled separately from the murder charge.
According to the docket, a hearing on the murder charge is set for April 20.
It had been on hold due to a state commission investigation into the trial judge, as well as upheaval in the district attorney's office.
Hicks said Galvan's case has been assigned to a prosecutor and his office is ready to move forward with a trial.
Get more background on this case as well as what happened after the mistrial in the Borderland Crimes podcast, which is available wherever you listen to podcasts.
