Sandra Bland’s family sues trooper who arrested her

The Texas Department of Public Safety had previously said that Trooper Encinia had acted improperly during the stop. Attorney Cannon Lambert, will represent the family in the upcoming lawsuit as her they push for a full investigation from the police department that apprehended Bland before her alleged suicide.

In addition to the questions that most believe authorities are sweeping under the rug, the autopsy results with vital information about Bland’s gastric content, time of death and other details have not been shared with any member of the family yet. The Texas Rangers and the FBI are investigating Bland’s arrest and her death at the jail.

Lambert expressed dismay that Encinia remains on administrative leave rather than being fired by the Texas Department of Public Safety. She was booked in the Waller County jail, where she later died.

Reed-Beal wants to know: “What happened to my daughter?”

“Period”, Bland’s mother, Geneva Reed-Veal, said at a news conference.

She was in Prairie View, northwest of Houston July 10 when she was stopped for a minor traffic infraction.

The intake records include a questionnaire filled out for Bland that states she had tried to kill herself in the last year by taking pills after losing a baby.

Waller County District Attorney Elton Mathis said his office will look at the original arrest to determine if the trooper’s actions were appropriate and to examine Bland’s death in her cell. Officials say she used a plastic bag to hang herself. The family said it was seeking financial damages, but court papers did not specify an amount. The findings also show she had marijuana in her system and that about 30 cuts along Bland’s wrist were likely self-inflicted some weeks before her arrest. He says it will name Texas Department of Public Safety trooper Brian Encinia and others.

“We are looking for Waller County and the individuals involved in this situation to take accountability”.

The lawsuit claims Encinia committed “assault and battery” on Bland by “pointing a Taser at her” during their roadside confrontation, and that he “assaulted and battered” Bland during her arrest, “wantonly intentionally and unreasonably” depriving Bland of her Constitutional rights, and setting in motion the events that led to her death.