Rick Perry Turns Himself In On Abuse Of Power Charges, Smiles For Mugshot

Chelsea ReganAugust 20, 2014, 12:00 amNews >

Texas Gov. Rick Perry turned himself in on Tuesday on the abuse of power charges that he’s maintained are untrue.

Rick Perry Booked On Abuse Of Power Charges

Perry arrived at the Travis County Courthouse in Austin to turn himself in and told the crowd outside the building of his intentions to fight the charges. "I'm going to fight this injustice with every fiber of my being. And we will prevail," Perry declared.

Sporting a a dark suit, white shirt and pale blue tie, Perry posed for his mugshot without his new signature glasses. The governor, showing his confidence, gave a smirk to the camera.

Following his booking, Perry headed for ice cream at Austin’s walk-up eatery Sandy’s – a trip that the politician documented on Twitter.

Perry Responds To Indictment

When it was announced last week that the Travis County Grand Jury had found it fit to charge Perry with abuse of power for vetoing funds to the office of District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg – who declined to resign after a drunken driving arrest – Perry firmly defended himself in a statement:

“As governor, I took an oath to faithfully uphold the constitution of Texas, a pledge that I have kept every day as I've worked on behalf of Texans for the last 14 years. This same constitution clearly outlines the authority of any governor to veto items at his or her discretion. Just as I have following every legislative session during my service as governor, I exercised this authority to veto funding for an office whose leadership had lost the public's confidence by acting inappropriately and unethically.

“I wholeheartedly and unequivocally stand behind my veto, and will continue to defend this lawful action of my executive authority as governor. We don't settle political differences with indictments in this country. It is outrageous that some would use partisan political theatrics to rip away at the very fabric of our state's constitution.

“This indictment amounts to nothing more than an abuse of power and I cannot, and will not, allow that to happen. I intend to fight against those who would erode our state's constitution and laws purely for political purposes, and I intend to win. I will explore every legal avenue to expedite this matter and bring it to a swift conclusion. I am confident we will ultimately prevail, that this farce of a prosecution will be revealed for what it is, and that those responsible will be held to account.”

Perry, whose 2012 presidential campaign flamed out in the primaries after a series of gaffes, has been floating the idea of making another bid at the presidency in 2016.