A grand jury gathered on Monday to try and decide whether or not criminal charges should be brought in the now infamous case of a black woman found dead in police custody in Texas.
The meeting in Waller County was the third time in six weeks that the jurors met to consider whether any charges would be brought over the death of Sandra Bland, who was found dead in July, three days after being pulled over by police. On Monday, Ms Bland’s mother, Geneva Reed-Veal, expressed dismay over the course the investigation had taken, telling reporters: “Right now the biggest problem I have is the entire process. It's the secrecy of it all."
Police officials have claimed she took her own life, a claim supposedly supported by the findings of a post-mortem examination, but her family have dismissed the accusation, and have filed a wrongful death lawsuit. On Monday,
The Houston Chronicle said the meeting of grand jurors was confirmed by Darrell Jordan, one of five Houston-area lawyers appointed as independent special prosecutors. The panel is presenting the case to the grand jury and if there are any indictments, those lawyers will take the case to trial.
Last week, a Houston federal judge set a January 2017 trial date for the wrongful death lawsuit brought by Ms Bland’s mother.
The death of Ms Bland, a Prairie View A&M University graduate, is one of a number of cases that have been taken up by the Black Lives Matter movement. Her ordeal and death intensified protests over the way some police treat black and minority suspects.
