Texas grand jury refuses murder indictment on man who killed deputy on no-knock raid

A grand jury in central Texas refused Wednesday to indict a man on murder charges after he killed a sheriff's deputy who stormed his house while executing an early-morning no-knock warrant looking for marijuana in December.

Henry Goedrich Magee will still face a charge for possession of marijuana while in possession of a deadly weapon, but prosecutors failed to convince the grand jury that Magee was out of line when he went for his gun while he thought he was being burglarized, ABC reported. Burleson County Sgt. Adam Sowders died during the drug raid, executing a search warrant at Magee's rural home northwest of Houston.

Magee's attorney, Dick DeGuerin of Houston, called the fatal shooting a tragic accident, noting that Magee believed his home was being robbed and his pregnant girlfriend at risk of harm.

"In my opinion, the Burleson County Sheriff’s Office did nothing illegal by securing and executing a “no knock” search warrant that day," said Julie Renken, 21st Judicial District Attorney, in a statement. "I believe the evidence also shows that an announcement was made. However, there is not enough evidence that Mr. Magee knew that day that Peace Officers were entering his home. The events occurred in a matter of seconds amongst chaos. The self-defense laws in Texas are viewed in the mindset of the actor, not the victim, which allows for tragedies to occur when one party is acting lawfully, but it can be reasonably seen as a threat of deadly force by another."

Watch a report on the case below.