"I
"I DON'T
"I DON'T TRUST Y'ALL." "JUST STOP." "LISTEN TO -
"DON'T
"DON'T STOP RESISTING." ANOTHER DRAMATIC USE OF FORCE INCIDENT BY A
WILLIAMSON COUNTY SHERIFF'S
DEPUTY.UNCOV
ERED BY THE KVUE DEFENDERS.THIS
TIME ON A
WOMAN REPORTED TO BE A DOMESTIC
VIOLENCE
VICTIM.SPARKING MORE QUESTIONS
ABOUT THE
DEPARTMENT.
DEPARTMENT. THIS PARTICULAR INCIDENT --
CAUGHT ON BODY CAMERA VIDEO -- COMES TO
LIGHT AS OUTSIDE
OFFICIALS LAUNCH THE LATEST
INVESTIGATION
INTO THE ACTIONS OF WILLIAMSON
COUNTY
DEPUTIES.
COUNTY DEPUTIES.
DEPUTIES.
DEPUTIES. HERE'S SENIOR REPORTER TONY
PLOHETSKI.
PLOHETSKI. --TAKE SOT--
--TAKE SOT-- 1:10 "I NEED TO SEE THE VICTIM. I NEED TO
SEE IF SHE NEEDS EMS. WHERE IS
SHE
SHE AT?"
SHE AT?" YOU'RE WATCHING BODY CAMERA VIDEO AS WILLIAMSON COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPUTIES
RESPOND TO AN
EMERGENCY CALL FROM NEIGHBORS
ABOUT A
POSSIBLE CASE OF DOMESTIC
VIOLENCE IN A NEARBY
APARTMENT.
ROOKIE DEPUTY AMANDA PEREIRA --
JUST THREE MONTHS
OUT OF THE ACADEMY -- IS THE
FIRST TO MAKE CONTACT
WITH THE SUSPECTED VICTIM THE
EVENING OF
SEPTEMBER 21ST, 2019.
THE 20-YEAR-OLD WOMAN
IMMEDIATELY EXPRESSES
HESITATION.
-- TAKE SOT --
3:55 "I DO NOT WANT TO TALK TO
YOU,
ESPECIALLY WILLIAMSON COUNTY.
Y'ALL HAVE A REALLY BAD
REPUTATION. I'VE HAD BAD
ENCOUNTERS WITH Y'ALL. I DO NOT
WANT TO DEAL WITH YOU."
FOR THE NEXT THREE MINUTES --
THE DEPUTY AND ALLEGED
VICTIM HAVE A CALM CONVERSATION.
-- TAKE SOT --
3:33
3:33 "WE
3:33 "WE GOT INTO AN ARGUMENT. THAT'S IT."IT WAS NOTHING PHYSICAL?
NOTHING PHYSICAL."
AND THE WOMAN INSISTS THAT HER
BOYFRIEND IS GONE.
-- TAKE SOT --
3:05 "HE LEFT.." HE LEFT? YOU
DON'T KNOW WHICH WAY HE
WENT? I DON'T KNOW AND IF I DID
I WOULDN'T TELL YOU."
DEPUTY PEREIRA INSTRUCTS THE
WOMAN TO GO
BACK INSIDE WHILE SHE CONSULTS
WITH OTHER
DEPUTIES ON THEIR WAY.
PERIERA WAITS ANOTHER THREE
MINUTES FOR OTHER
DEPUTIES TO SHOW UP. UP UNTIL
NOW, EVERYTHING
HAS REMAINED CALM. THEN DEPUTY
LORENZO
HERNANDEZ, A DEPARTMENT TRAINING
OFFICER
ARRIVES, AND THAT ALL CHANGES.
PERIERA KNOCKS. WATCH WHAT
HAPPENS
HAPPENS NEXT -- FROM HER BODY CAM. -- SOT --
8:41 "SO, WE NEED TO SEE IF THIS
GUY IS
INSIDE YOUR APARTMENT.
"WHO ELSE IS IN HERE?
NO, Y'ALL REALLY DON'T...YOU
REALLY DON'T."
DEPUTY HERNANDEZ -- THIS VANTAGE
POINT FROM HIS BODY
CAM -- GRABS THE WOMAN AND TAKES
HER TO THE GROUND. AGAIN,
SHE IS A SUSPECTED DOMESTIC
VIOLENCE VICTIM.
OVER THE NEXT 30 SECONDS, WHAT
HAD BEEN A STABLE SCENE ONLY
MOMENTS EARLIER ERUPTS INTO A
FRANTIC, CHAOTIC ENCOUNTER AS A
THIRD DEPUTY, DAVID DICKERSON,
ARRIVES. THE THREE DEPUTIES
HANDCUFF THE WOMAN AND
EVENTUALLY TAKE HER TO THE
GROUND.
<"I WASN'T HURT BEFORE AND NOW
YOU ARE HURTING ME."
-- TONY STANDUP --
"OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS, WE
HAVE BEEN IN TOUCH WITH THAT
YOUNG WOMAN'S FAMILY. SHE DOES
NOT WANT TO SPEAK PUBLICLY
ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED. BUT EXPERTS
SAY WHAT IS SO STRIKING
ABOUT WHAT YOU SEE IN THESE
VIDEOS IS THAT SHE HAD NOT BEEN
ACCUSED OF A CRIME. SHE SHOWED
NO PHYSICAL
RESISTANCE. AND ADVOCATES FOR
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS
POINT OUT THAT THE DEPUTIES WERE
SENT TO HELP HER, AND
INSTEAD, MAY HAVE ONLY
TRAUMATIZED HER MORE."
7:14 HERNANDEZ VIDEO -"QUIT
TALKING! QUIT TALKING! SHUT
YOUR
YOUR MOUTH AND QUIT TALKING!" THE 20-YEAR-OLD WOMAN REMAINED HANDCUFFED
FOR SEVERAL MINUTES AS DEPUTIES
HERNANDEZ AND
DICKERSON -- WITH THEIR GUNS
DRAWN -- SEARCHED
WHAT TURNED OUT TO BE AN EMPTY
APARTMENT. -- NAT -- 4:41 "IF YOU ARE IN HERE MAKE YOURSELF KNOWN!"
THEN, THEY FINALLY TAKE THE
WOMAN BACK INSIDE,
AND UNLATCH HER HANDCUFFS. --
NATS--
HERNANDEZ BEGINS LECTURING THE
WOMAN.
-- SOT --
14:38 "WHEN WE COME TO STUFF
LIKE
THIS, WE ARE GOING TO CHECK FOR
SAFETY REASONS. WE ARE
GOING TO MAKE SURE HE IS NOT
HERE AND THAT YOU ARE NOT
HIDING HIM. I UNDERSTAND THAT
YOU DON'T WANT TO COOPERATE, WE
UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT YOU DON'T
DO WHAT YOU JUST DID. NOT WHEN
WE
SHOW UP FOR SOMETHING LIKE
THIS." -- SOT --
14:51 "WHEN WE DON'T GET YOUR
COOPERATION, THAT IS WHAT
HAPPENS. ALL THIS SCREAMING, AND
ALL THIS S--- DOES NOT MAKE US
STOP."
-- SOT --
4:32 "YOU ARE RE-VICTIMIZING THE
VICTIM."
WE SHOWED THE VIDEOS TO ONE OF
THE NATION'S
LEADING LAW ENFORCEMENT EXPERTS.
TIMOTHY
WILLIAMS HELPED THE LOS ANGELES
POLICE DEPARTMENT
DEVELOP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
POLICIES AND
PROCEDURES.
-- SOT --
5:39 "THE THING IS, WHAT YOU SAW
IS
WRONG. THAT IS NOT THE TRAINING
WE RECEIVE. THAT IS JUST THE
OPPOSITE OF DE-ESCALATION,
THAT'S ESCALATION."
AND AN INTERNAL AFFAIRS
INVESTIGATION
AGREED. THIS WEEK, WILLIAMSON
COUNTY
SHERIFFS' OFFICIALS CONFIRMED
THAT THEY
THAT THEY
LOOKED
LOOKED INTO THE MATTER AT THE TIME AND SUSPENDED HERNANDEZ FOR A DAY BECAUSE "HIS
FAILURE TO PROPERLY DE-
ESCALATE THE INCIDENT IS
UNACCEPTABLE."
WILLIAMSON COUNTY SHERIFF'S
OFFICE
OFFICIALS ALSO REQUIRED HIM TO
BE RETRAINED AND
REMOVED HIM FROM BEING A
TRAINING OFFICER. BUT
TWO MONTHS LATER -- THEY
PROMOTED HIM TO DETECTIVE.
-- SOT --
1:22 "MY FIRST THOUGHT WAS IF
THIS SURVIVOR NEEDS HELP
AGAIN, WOULD SHE FEEL SAFE
CALLING?"
NIKHITA VED, LEGAL SERVICES
DIRECTOR FOR THE NONPROFIT
SAFE AUSTIN, SAID DOMESTIC
VIOLENCE SURVIVORS
OFTEN NEED POLICE TO HELP CALM
THEM.
-- SOT --
3:47 "WHAT A SURVIVOR DOES NOT
NEED IS MORE POWER
AND CONTROL BEING ASSERTED OVER
THEM."
HERNANDEZ JOINED THE WILLIAMSON
COUNTY
SHERIFF'S OFFICE IN SEPTEMBER
2017 AS PART OF A
NEW GROUP OF DEPUTIES HIRED
UNDER SHERIFF ROBERT CHODY.
HE PREVIOUSLY WORKED FOR THE
BASTROP
COUNTY SHERIFF, WHO SUSPENDED
HERNANDEZ FOR
12 HOURS WITHOUT PAY MONTHS
EARLIER AFTER
HE LEFT HIS GUN AT A WINGSTOP
RESTAURANT.
SINCE THEN, HE WAS FEATURED ON
THE SHOW "LIVE PD," AND
THREE MONTHS BEFORE THE
ENCOUNTER WITH THE
YOUNG WOMAN, WAS INVOLVED IN A
CONTROVERSIAL
USE OF FORCE IN THE ARREST OF
RAMSEY MITCHELL,
WHICH REMAINS UNDER
INVESTIGATION.
-- SOT --
13:25 "OBVIOUSLY, SHE IS GOING
TO PUT UP
WITH HIS S---."
BUT NEARLY A YEAR AFTER THAT
NIGHT, WE HAVE LEARNED
THAT THE TEXAS RANGERS AND
WILLIAMSON COUNTY
PROSECUTORS HAVE OPENED AN
INVESTIGATION
INTO WHAT HAPPENED AND ARE
REVIEWING IT AS A POSSIBLE
CASE OF EXCESSIVE FORCE. THE
WILLIAMSON COUNTY SHERIFF'S
OFFICE SAYS IT
WELCOMES AN OUTSIDE
INVESTIGATION BY THE TEXAS
RANGERS AND COUNTY PROSECUTORS.
THAT NIGHT -- SEVENTEEN MINUTES
AFTER THEY FIRST GOT
TO THE APARTMENT -- DEPUTIES
ENDED THE
ENCOUNTER.
AS THEY LEFT THE YOUNG WOMAN'S
HOME, THEY THANKED
THE NEIGHBOR FOR CALLING 911.
14:33
"IF YOU HEAR A COMMOTION, DON'T
BE AFRAID TO CALL US, OK?"
14:33
14:33 "IF
14:33 "IF YOU HEAR A COMMOTION, DON'T BE AFRAID TO CALL US, OK?"
THE
THE NEIGHBOR FOR CALLING 911. 14:33 "IF YOU HEAR A COMMOTION, DON'T
BE AFRAID TO CALL US, OK?"
WE DID NOT IDENTIFY THE WOMAN IN
THE VIDEO BECAUSE HER FAMILY ASKED US NOT TO.
TONY, SHOULD THOSE DEPUTIES HAVE
GONE INTO HER
HOME
HOME WITHOUT HER PERMISSION?
BRYAN
BRYAN --
BRYAN -- THIS IS AN INTERESTING AREA OF THE LAW. BUT LEGAL EXPERTS SAY THE ONE THING
DEPUTIES DID RIGHT HERE
WAS SEARCH THE APARTMENT IN CASE
SHE WAS STILL IN
DANGER. THEY SAY HAD THE
DEPUTIES NOT DONE SO, AND
SHE HAD BEEN HURT, THE SHERIFF'S
OFFICE COULD
HAVE BEEN HELD LIABLE.
COULD
COULD DEPUTIES FACE POSSIBLE CHARGES? IT IS UNCLEAR WHEN THE RANGERS
WILL BE FINISHED
WITH THEIR INVESTIGATION OR WHAT
CHARGES -- IF
OR
OR WHAT
OR WHAT CHARGES -- IF ANY -- THE DEPUTIES COULD FACE.
COULD FACE.
THANKS,