Travis County Jury Convicts Man Charged with Murder, Robbery, and Evading Arrest with a Prior Conviction
Travis County, TX — On Friday, August 28, 2026, a Travis County jury convicted Brian Davis, 43,of Murder, Robbery, and Evading Arrest with a Prior Conviction.
On Monday, August 24, 2026, a jury was selected, and the State began presenting evidence on the following day. On Wednesday, August 26, 2026, after the defendant requested a competency evaluation and the court ruled him competent to proceed with the trial, the State continued presenting evidence. On Friday, August 28, 2026, the jury found Davis guiltyof Murder, Robbery, and Evading Arrest with a Prior Conviction.On that day, the jury sentenced him to 60 years for Murder, 25 years for Robbery, and 5 years for Evading Arrest with a Prior Conviction, all to be served concurrently in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
Austin Police Department investigators discovered that Davis and his girlfriend had been guests in the home of the victim, John Walker Oden, 53. Just after midnight on October 3, 2023, Oden offered to drive Davis and the female to the hospital to address a medical issue, after letting them know they weren’t able to stay in Oden’s home any longer. While Oden was driving, Davis attacked him from the backseat of the vehicle with a battleaxe-style hatchet. After stopping the car on the sidewalk of the frontage road of the 12100 block of N. Mopac Expressway, Davis pulled Oden out of the vehicle, got in the front seat, and drove over Oden with the vehicle.
When an arrest warrant was issued for Davis, Lone Star Fugitive Task Force members discovered he was already detained in Travis County Jail for an attempted carjacking and subsequent evading from a peace officer committed later the morning of October 3, 2023.
On December 13, 2023, Davis was indicted for the offense of Murder, later enhanced by his two prior penitentiary trips for Robbery, Burglary of a Habitation, and Deadly Conduct. He was also indicted for Robbery and Evading Arrest with a Prior; those two cases were later consolidated along with the Murder.
Assistant District Attorneys Kate Hall and Jacques Roussel presented the case against Davis with the support of Victim Counselor Ashlie Jones, Investigator Mike Henderson, Paralegal Hannah Joy, and Legal Secretary Chardell Johnson. Austin Police Department Detective Manuel Hernandez investigated the case against Davis.
“Our office hopes this conviction honors the victim and that it continues to help his family with their healing process,” said Travis County District Attorney José Garza. “We are grateful to our team and law enforcement partners for their tireless work on this case, which ultimately brought justice to the victim and his family.”
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