Deaths and Injuries in Police Custody

[Andrea]

Grand jury decides against indictments in Sandra Bland case

http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/21/us/sandra-bland-no-indictments/index.html

A grand jury in the case of Sandra Bland has decided not to return any indictments, according to Darrell Jordan, a special prosecutor handling the case.

Bland, an African-American woman, was found dead in her cell three days after she was arrested for allegedly failing to use her turn signal on July 10. She was 28.

Officials in Waller County, Texas, have said she hanged herself with a plastic bag. Her family and others have questioned that account.

Her case attracted widespread attention amid national discussions about excessive force and the role of race in policing.

[TruTexan]

Originally Posted by Andrea

Grand jury decides against indictments in Sandra Bland case

http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/21/us/sandra-bland-no-indictments/index.html

A grand jury in the case of Sandra Bland has decided not to return any indictments, according to Darrell Jordan, a special prosecutor handling the case.

Bland, an African-American woman, was found dead in her cell three days after she was arrested for allegedly failing to use her turn signal on July 10. She was 28.

Officials in Waller County, Texas, have said she hanged herself with a plastic bag. Her family and others have questioned that account.

Her case attracted widespread attention amid national discussions about excessive force and the role of race in policing.

This was on our Dallas News Tonight at 10pm Central time. It seems they aren't done trying to get something prosecuted, but didn't say if it was the family persuing it or the prosecutor and what it entailed.
I find it hard to believe that a jailer didn't know anything about what happened in her cell. I would put money on it that there were prisoners calling for help if she was the only one involved and did it to herself.

[Andrea]

Ch. 2 Investigation of Georgia police shootings finds nearly half shot in back, unarmed

http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/ch-2-investigation-georgia-police-shootings-finds-/nppnL/?ecmp=wsbtv_social_twitter_sfp

A Channel 2 Action News - Atlanta Journal Constitution investigation found Maurice was one of 90 Georgians killed by police since 2010 who were either unarmed, shot in the back or both. That's nearly half of all 184 cases reviewed

[Andrea]

Video shows tased East student wasn't moving

http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/news/2015/dec/22/video-shows-tased-east-student-wasnt-moving/

A student resource officer tased a 16-year-old Victoria East High School student who was standing still against a wall in November, a video posted to YouTube shows.

The video, posted Sunday by an anonymous source, shows a Nov. 3 incident in which school officials cordoned off the student in a hallway.

[Andrea]

NYPD Cop Indicted For Falsely Arresting Man Who Recorded Him

http://gothamist.com/2015/12/22/cop_watch_season_2_the_reckoning.php

Manhattan prosecutors have done something rare indeed: indicted a cop for allegedly falsely arresting someone and lying about it. NYPD Officer Jonathan Munoz, 32, was arraigned this morning on two felony charges of filing false reports, and three misdemeanor charges of official misconduct and false statements.

"Had this officer’s attempts to conceal his alleged misconduct succeeded, an innocent man may still be facing charges for a fabricated crime," Manhattan DA Cy Vance said in a statement.

Munoz's prosecution stems from his role in arresting Jason Disisto, then 21, in the spring of 2014. From our report this April:

Disisto was standing outside of a Puerto Rican restaurant around 1 a.m. when he saw Officer Jonathan Munoz reaching into his friend's pocket. Disisto asked a friend to give him his phone so he could record, but as he lined up the shot, Munoz spotted him and rushed over to grab him. A brief struggle for the phone ensued, with two other officers joining in, and it ended with Disisto in cuffs in the back of a police car.

Before the officers drove away, one threw the cellphone out the window.

[Andrea]

Baltimore County officer placed on administrative duty as second video of Towson arrest surfaces

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-county/towson/bs-md-co-towson-arrest-folo-20151222-story.html

A Baltimore County police officer was placed on administrative duty Tuesday, three days after a video began circulating of him repeatedly punching a 19-year-old man during an arrest in Towson early Saturday, officials said.

A second video that emerged Tuesday showed two police officers struggling to take down Zachary Blumenstein, with one of the officers grabbing him by the back of the neck and punching him at least five times in the face as he resisted.

Blumenstein was also pepper-sprayed twice before being handcuffed and charged with resisting arrest, disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct, trespass and failure to obey a police officer, county police have said.

[Andrea]

Dearborn cop fatally shoots unarmed suspect in Detroit

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2015/12/23/detroit-shooting/77835932/

The off-duty officer — who has reportedly only been on the Dearborn Police Department for a few years — spotted the 34-year-old man suspected of a larceny from a few days ago.

The officer tried to stop the suspect who then ran.

According to the source, the officer and suspect got into a wrestling match before the suspect broke free and ran again. The officer caught up with him and tried to subdue him with pepper spray.

The suspect then reportedly tried to grab the officer’s weapon, at which point he was shot by the officer, according to the source.

Dearborn Police Chief Ronald Haddad confirmed the suspect was wanted for a misdemeanor warrant out of Redford Township, near Dearborn’s border with Detroit.

There was a brief chase on foot and a struggle leading to the fatal shooting, Haddad said.

The officer was taken to the hospital, Haddad said.

The officer is white and the suspect was black. Police did not release the name of the man nor information about the officer.

Bolding mine

[Andrea]

Sanctions likely in controversial police shooting case
Black teen’s shooting by white officer typified many AJC findings about fatal police shootings in Georgia.

http://www.myajc.com/news/news/crime-law/sanctions-likely-in-controversial-police-shooting-/nprLz/

Waiters, who was black, was both unarmed and shot in the back. The 19-year-old ran when police arrived to break up a neighborhood fight he’d been watching, and was already lying face down on the ground with one arm handcuffed when Lewis shot him twice in the back. The teen hadn’t committed a crime.