July 16--The family of Sandra Bland, a suburban woman found dead in a Texas jail cell, is asking to meet with investigators, saying they have questions about a coroner's ruling that she committed suicide.
Sandra Bland was found dead in her cell at the Waller County jail at 9 a.m. Monday, from what appeared to be suicide by hanging, according to authorities.
"This family is looking to understand what happened," attorney Cannon Lambert said during a noon press conference Thursday. "This is concerning to them."
Lambert said the family asked that Bland's death not be politicized and asked for calm
The family held a press conference Thursday from the Chicago office of Karchmar and Lambert, a personal injury law firm.
The 28-year-old was arrested Friday afternoon in Waller County, northwest of Houston, after failing to signal a lane change, according to Department of Public Safety spokesman Trooper Erik Burse.
Bland, a Naperville resident according to public records, was about to be let off with a written warning when she kicked the officer outside her car and was taken into custody, he said.
Sheriff Glenn Smith said she was charged with assault of a public servant and was arraigned over the weekend, when her bond was set at $5,000. A female jailer founder her about 9 a.m. Monday, Smith said.
Paramedics were called and CPR was administered, he said, but she was pronounced dead shortly afterward.
The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences in Houston performed an autopsy on Bland on Tuesday, with the death ruled a suicide through hanging, according to Tricia Bentley, an institute spokeswoman.
The Texas Rangers, the investigative arm of Texas' Public Safety Department, has been called in to investigate Bland's death, a move that Waller County District Attorney Elton Mathis said was "typical protocol."
Burse said the investigation could take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months.
Posts featuring "#JusticeForSandy" and "#WhatHappenedToSandyBland" have gone up on Facebook and Twitter in recent days, questioning the official account of the woman's death.
A Facebook page belonging to a Sandra Bland featured a post from Thursday with "#WallerCountyLine."
Smith said there was no indication of any issues during Bland's stay at the jail.
"Any time somebody dies, it's a tragic deal," Smith said.
Mathis said Wednesday that he had no reason at this point to not attribute Bland's death to suicide.
"If I receive information that there's something nefarious going on, or foul play, we will certainly get to the bottom of that," Mathis said. "I understand there's some disbelief among some friends and family that she would do this to herself. That's why it's very important that the Texas Rangers be allowed to conduct a thorough investigation."
Bland was pulled over about 4:30 p.m. Friday in Waller County for failing to signal a lane change, said Trooper Erik Burse, a spokesman for the Public Safety Department.
She was outside the car and about to be issued a written warning when she kicked the officer, Burse said, and was then taken into custody.
Bland was arraigned after her Friday arrest and held in lieu of $5,000 bond, Smith said. The county jail has two "tanks" for women, Smith said, and Bland had been placed alone in one of the tanks.
She was given breakfast about 7 a.m. Monday, he said, and she spoke to staff about an hour later about making a phone call. She was found two hours later and paramedics were called, Smith said.
"She was a very, very accomplished young lady," said Rev. James Miller, pastor at DuPage African Methodist Episcopal Church in Lisle. "I just hope that the investigation is very comprehensive."
Bland and her family had been members of the church for about 18 years, Miller said.
Bland went to college on a band scholarship at Texas Prairie View A M, Miller said.
"She was a commendable, active young adult, and she was a very spirited individual who was prayerful," Miller said. "We were very encouraged with her being a young adult and active because most times it's hard to get that population active."
Miller said he was, and still is, very shocked about what he heard happened to Bland.
"It's quite a coincidence that these events keep happening," Miller said. "I think that it's evidence of an unresolved cultural issue of some kind that these young African Americans keep suffering some form of violence at the hands of the authority."
Bland graduated from Prairie View A University in 2009 with a degree in agriculture, Yolanda Bevill, a spokeswoman, said. She was in the band at school and a member of Sigma Gamma Rho sorority.
"We absolutely mourn the loss of one of our bright students, and we're looking for the Texas rangers to provide us with a detailed report of what happened," Bevill said.
Naperville Sun reporters Maggie Angst and William Bird, and Beacon-News reporter Sarah Freishtat contributed to this story.
