“As a mother, my inner is telling me that she did not do that”, Bland’s mother, Geneva Reed-Beal, said Tuesday.
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When a reporter asked why the family didn’t post bail to get Bland out of jail, Reed-Veal walked away in apparent disgust, though Cooper said it was a fair question.
The family of Sandra Bland officially filed a 46-page lawsuit on Tuesday morning against a Texas state trooper and the Waller County Sheriff’s Office, which they hold responsible for her untimely death several weeks ago.
Bland was then taken to the Waller County Jail, where jailers placed her in a cell by herself.
He says it will name Texas Department of Public Safety trooper Brian Encinia and others.
As the site notes, the 28-year-old was pulled over by Encinia after failing to signal a lane change.
Still, her death has helped fuel growing criticism of American policing amid a string of incidents involving the treatment of minorities by police across the United States. Bland, who was in the process of moving to Texas from the Chicago area, is booked into the Waller County jail.
The federal complaint asserts a federal civil rights claim, assault and battery, wrongful death and survival actions, and vicarious liability for Officer Encinia’s alleged “willful and wanton” conduct, among other claims.
The lawsuit alleged that Waller County provided inadequate policies and jailer training to protect inmates who are “potentially suicidal”, and accused Encinia of arresting Bland illegally. Yes, she called us Saturday, informed us of the situation, the bail, we said we’d take care of it expeditiously.
The official autopsy says it was most likely suicide, but Bland’s own family has some serious doubts.
Many people have wondered why Bland’s family didn’t come up with the $500 to bail her out.
To counter that theory Waller County officials released new video last week showing Bland inside the jail without issue. “It’s why we filed suit”.
A lawyer for the family told a news conference in Houston they are asking the US Department of Justice to investigate. Authorities have said Bland hanged herself with a plastic garbage can liner.
“Texas Department of Public Safety knew or should have known that Defendant Brian Encinia exhibited a pattern of escalating encounters with the public”, according to the lawsuit.
“The bottom line is she never should have been inside the jail cell”.
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KHOU-TV The suit also argues the sheriff’s office and guards are liable because they failed to adequately monitor Bland and protect her while she was in custody.
