ANOTHER TRAFFIC STOP – ANOTHER BLACK FATALITY – SANDRA BLAND – WALLER COUNTY, TX

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28-year old African-American Sandra Bland was stopped for a routine traffic violation in Waller County, Texas, a county with a history of racial tension.  Apparently she failed to use her turn signal to indicate a lane change.  Reportedly she had a history of depression and drugs.

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On July 10, 2015, 28 year old Sandra Bland was arrested and charged with assaulting a public servant.  She was taken to Waller Co Jail; three days later she was found in her cell dead from what officials called suicide.  Both the FBI and the Texas Rangers launched investigations trying to find out what happened.

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The following is from the Rolling Stone Magazine of July 24, 2015 in an article written by Matt Taibbi, “Sandra Bland Murdered – Suicide Or Not, Police Responsible for Sandra Bland’s Death”.

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Suddenly even hardcore law and order enthusiasts are realizing that the criminal code is so broad and littered with so many tiny technical prohibitions that a determined enough police officer can stop and arrest pretty much anybody at any time.

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Bland was on her way to a new job at Prairie A&M University when she was pulled over for failing to signal when changing lanes, something roughly 100% of American drivers do on regular basis.  Irritated for being stopped she was curt with Officer Brian Encina when he wrote her up.  He didn’t like her attitude and decided to flex his muscles a little, asking her to put out her cigarette.

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She balked, that’s when things went sideways.  Officer Encina demanded that she get out of the car and when she did not comply he reached for his Taser and said, “I’ll light you up”.  He eventually transported her back to the police station where she was put in jail.

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Texas Department of Safety ruled that Officer Brian Encina, the arresting officer, notwithstanding the fact that he pulled Sandra Bland from her car and threatened her with a Taser, had merely violated the state’s “courtesy policy.”   Texas said there is “no evidence” yet of criminal behavior by Officer Encina

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Bottom line:  Perhaps women need to carry tasers in their car to keep the police honest!

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