Jury Split on Whether or Not La Grange Man Robbed Burton Bank

The Burton bank robbery trial of Shawn Patrick Childers ended in a hung jury and a mistrial last Wednesday, Oct. 12.

The jury deliberated for four and a half hours on Wednesday, according to KWHI radio of Brenham, before informing the judge they could not reach a unanimous verdict. Seven of the 12 jurors voted Childers was not guilty. Childers, 55 of La Grange, faced three counts of aggravated robbery of the Burton State Bank on June 7, 2018. Each count was for the three tellers whom the robber threatened with a gun. Surveillance video at the bank captured images of a man wearing a cowboy hat, sunglasses and a medical mask. The man was wearing a red shirt and left the bank with approximately $12,000. He drove away in a white truck. Washington County investigators identified Childers as a suspect. A grand jury indicted him and Childers was arrested in La Grange on May 28, 2020, nearly two years after the robbery.

Washington County District Attorney Julie Renken prosecuted the case. Renken presented evidence that Childers had turned off his cell phone during the time of the robbery, and that he visited a pair of casinos in Louisiana in the days after the robbery. Renken also presented the jury with Childers’ financial records, which showed a negative bank balance before the robbery and a $1,500 deposit after the robbery. The defense argued that the state failed to show any physical evidence such as fingerprints or DNA evidence linking Childers to the robbery.

A hung jury does not acquit Childers of the crime. The prosecution could decide to try the case again, offer Childers a plea deal or dismiss the case. Renken told the Record last Friday that she has not yet decided how she will proceed.

Childers remains behind bars in the Washington County Jail. His bond was set at $90,000. That total included $30,000 for each of the three counts of aggravated robbery. Childers appealed his bond, asking the court to reduce the total amount to $45,000. The Appeals Court of Texas for the First District rejected his appeal earlier this year.