THE
THE KVUE
THE KVUE DEFENDERS UNCOVERED THIS BODY CAMERA VIDEO SHOWING A FATAL
RESTRAINT BY
WILLIAMSON COUNTY DEPUTIES IN
MARCH OF 2019.
THE VIDEO CHRONICLES THE END OF
A POLICE PURSUIT
AFTER JAVIER AMBLER COMMITTED A
MINOR TRAFFIC
VIOLATION.
WHILE DEPUTIES TRY TO RESTRAIN
HIM, AMBLER
YELLS HE CAN'T BREATHE, AND HE
EVENTUALLY DIES.
EVENTUALLY DIES. TONIGHT. THE KVUE DEFENDERS
REVEAL HOW OFTEN SUSPECTS DIE IN POLICE
CUSTODY HERE
IN TEXAS, WHILE UNDER RESTRAINT.
HERE'S
HERE'S INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER BRAD STREICHER.
BRAD STREICHER. SINCE 2010 IN TEXAS, NEARLY 15
HUNDRED SUSPECTS DIED IN POLICE CUSTODY BEFORE THEY
EVER GOT
BOOKED INTO JAIL.
RECORDS WE UNCOVERED SHOW
HUNDREDS OF
THEM DIED WHILE PHYSICALLY
RESTRAINED BY
OFFICERS, OR IN HANDCUFFS.
IT'S INFORMATION TEXAS LAW
ENFORCEMENT
AGENCIES ARE REQUIRED TO REPORT
TO THE STATE.
BUT OUR INVESTIGATION FOUND THE
STATE HAS
MINIMAL REQUIREMENTS OF THOSE
REPORTING THIS
INFORMATION... AND FOR WHAT'S
DONE WITH IT AFTER.
THAT'S WHY SOME SAY DETAILS
ABOUT THESE DEATHS
ARE SOMETIMES INCOMPLETE,
INCONSISTENT AND CONFUSING.
NATS:
NATS: NATS FROM AMBER VIDEO VIDEO OBTAINED BY THE KVUE DEFENDERS LAST MONTH
GAVE US THE FIRST LOOK AT THE
2019 DEATH OF JAVIER
AMBLER. WILLIAMSON COUNTY
SHERIFF
DEPUTIES PURSUED AMBLER FOR 22
MINUTES INTO
TRAVIS COUNTY AFTER THEY TRIED
TO STOP HIM FOR FAILING
TO DIM HIS HEADLIGHTS.
NATS: NATS FROM VIDEO
EVENTUALLY, AMBLER CRASHES, AND
DEPUTIES TRY
TO RESTRAIN HIM.
NATS: I CAN'T BREATHE
AMBLER WARNS DEPUTIES HE CAN'T
BREATHE, AND HE HAS
CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE. AFTER
A
A STRUGGLE THAT LASTED SEVERAL MINUTES, AMBLER WAS DEAD.
HOUSTON
DEAD. HOUSTON TO BASICALLY DIE RIGHT THERE IN
THE STREET, IT'S JUST A
TRAGEDY.
STATE REPRESENTATIV E GARNET
COLEMAN HAS
HELPED LEAD THE CHARGE FOR
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
REFORMS IN TEXAS. INCLUDING THE
SANDRA BLAND
ACT. THE PASSED IN 2017, AIMED
AT ENSURING
MENTALLY ILL SUSPECTS GET
TREATMENT AND OFFICERS
RECEIVE DE-ESCALATION TRAINING.
BLAND WAS FOUND
DEAD IN A WALLER COUNTY JAIL
CELL FOLLOWING A
CONTROVERSIAL TRAFFIC STOP BY A
DPS TROOPER IN
2015. COLEMAN SAYS REPORTING
POLICE
CUSTODY DEATHS IS CRITICAL TO
ACCOUNTABILITY
.
ACCOUNTABILITY . HOUSTON
. HOUSTON
. HOUSTON WE DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON
UNTIL WE KNOW ACTUALLY
HOW IT'S IMPACTING PEOPLE. R
POLICE AGENCIES ACROSS THE STATE
ARE
REQUIRED BY LAW TO REPORT
IN-CUSTODY DEATHS TO THE
TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE.
BUT
OUR INVESTIGATION FOUND THE
AGENCY
DOESN'T DO ANYTHING WITH IT. THE
AG'S OFFICE SAYS IT'S
"MERELY A REPOSITORY." LAWMAKERS
SAY WE SHOULD BE
DOING MORE TO STUDY AND LEARN
FROM THAT DATA. HOUSTON
WE'RE IN 2020, SO IF WE DON'T
GET THIS RIGHT NOW, WE'LL
NEVER GET IT RIGHT. IF THERE'S
EVER AN IMPUTES FOR
CHANGE, IT'S NOW.
FOLLOWING OUR REPORT ON JAVIER
AMBLER'S DEATH, THE
KVUE DEFENDERS OBTAINED DATA
GATHERED BY
THE TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL'S
OFFICE
SHOWING POLICE CUSTODY DEATHS.
NATS: WOOSH
IT SHOWS SINCE 2010. 1,454
PEOPLE HAVE DIED IN POLICE
CUSTODY, BEFORE THEY EVEN GOT TO
JAIL. THE
LARGEST DEPARTMENTS POLICING THE
MOST PEOPLE IN
THE STATE TOP THE LIST, LIKE
HOUSTON WITH 170. AND AUSTIN
POLICE RANKS 7TH WITH 52 CUSTODY
DEATHS
REPORTED.
DEATHS REPORTED. THIS IS THE MOST EGREGIOUS THING
THAT CAN
HAPPEN TO AN INDIVIDUAL WHEN THE
GOVERNMENT IS
DEALING WITH THEMTHEY CAN LOSE
THEIR LIFE.
ANOTHER STATE REPRESENTATIV E,
JOE MOODY, HAS ALSO
WORKED TO STRENGTHEN
TRANSPARENCY REQUIREMENTS
FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT.
I HOPE THAT NOW, IN THIS MOMENT,
THERE IS AN URGENCY
TO DO SOMETHING.
NATS: WOOSH
OUR ANALYSIS ALSO FOUND 261 OF
ALL THOSE IN-CUSTODY
DEATHS WERE REPORTED TO HAPPEN
WHILE THE SUSPECT
WAS UNDER SOME FORM OF
RESTRAINT. WHICH ISN'T
CLEARLY DEFINED BUT COULD MEAN
WITH
HANDCUFFS, OR ANOTHER DEVICE OR
TECHNIQUE
USED BY THE OFFICER. AGAIN,
HOUSTON PD HAS THE MOST.
BUT AUSTIN PD IS IN THE TOP 5,
REPORTING 11 DEATHS WHILE
SUSPECTS WERE UNDER RESTRAINT.
NATS: WOOSH
THE KVUE DEFENDERS ALSO LOOKED
AT THE REPORTED
RACE OF EACH PERSON WHO DIED IN
POLICE CUSTODY WHILE
UNDER RESTRAINT. SINCE 2010 THE
DATA SHOWS 94
WHITE SUSPECTS, 82 HISPANICS, 81
BLACK
SUSPECTS AND 4 LABELED AS
"OTHER."
STATE LAW GIVES LAW ENFORCEMENT
AGENCIES 30
DAYS TO REPORT DETAILS OF THOSE
DEATHS TO THE
ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE.
AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT
"30 DAYS INTO AN INCIDENT, WE'VE
DONE A LOT OF, YOU
KNOW, THE BULK OF OUR
INTERVIEWS. BUT THERE'S
STILL A LOT OF PHYSICAL EVIDENCE
THAT WE'RE STILL
PROCESSING AND GOING THROUGH, SO
THERE MAY BE
QUESTIONS THAT ARE UNANSWERED.
PAT CONNOR, A COMMANDER FOR
AUSTIN POLICE, SAYS
THEY RARELY GET FEEDBACK OR
FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS
FROM THE STATE. AND THE LAW ONLY
SAYS AGENCIES HAVE
TO GIVE A "GOOD FAITH EFFORT"
WHEN THEY'RE REPORTING
THOSE DETAILS. THE AG'S OFFICE
OFFERS ALMOST NO GUIDANCE.
AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT
"THE PERSON THAT'S FILLING IT
OUT ANSWERS THE QUESTIONS
TO THE BEST OF THEIR ABILITY TO
INCLUDE THE INFORMATION
THAT, FROM THE INVESTIGATION
STANDPOINT, WE'RE
COMFORTABLE RELEASING PUBLICLY.
THAT COULD EXPLAIN SOME OF THE
PROBLEMS WITH
THE DATA.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF TEXAS
JUSTICE INITIATIVE
INCONSISTENCIES, MISSPELLINGS,
YOU KNOW, JUST
ERRORS IN ENTERING WRONG
LOCATIONS OR
COUNTIES.
EVA MORAVEC LAUNCHED HER WEBSITE
TEXAS JUSTICE
INITIATIVE IN 2017 BECAUSE SHE
WANTED TO FIX PROBLEMS
WITH AND RE-PUBLISH CRIMINAL
JUSTICE DATA
RELEASED BY THE STATELIKE
IN-CUSTODY DEATHS.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF TEXAS
JUSTICE INITIATIVE
HOLISTICALLY, THERE'S NOTHING
THAT'S DONE TO KIND
OF TAKE A LOOK AT ALL OF THESE
INCIDENTS AND MAKE SOME
SENSE OF THEM.
IN A STATEMENT, A SPOKESPERSON
FOR THE OFFICE
OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL SAID,
"...IF THE OAG IS
MADE AWARE OF A MISSING REPORT,
WE REACH OUT TO
THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY IN
QUESTION AND
REQUEST THE REPORT BE LOCATED
AND SENT TO OUR
OFFICE." TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL
KEN PAXTON ALSO
RECENTLY WROTE AN OP- ED FOR THE
AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, WHERE
HE
HE SAID,
HE SAID, "MY OFFICE IS NOT EMPOWERED TO INVESTIGATE THESE DEATHS,
NOR HAS IT BEEN GIVEN THE
JURISDICTION TO PROSECUTE
SUCH CASES. INSTEAD, THE LAW
PERMITS THE ATTORNEY
GENERAL TO SIMPLY ACT AS A
FILING CABINET."
AFTER OUR INVESTIGATION,
LAWMAKERS TELL US THEY
PLAN TO PUSH FOR BETTER USE OF
THIS DATA LIKE STATE
ANALYSIS AND PUBLISHED REPORTS.
"I'M GOING TO WORK TO MAKE SURE
THAT WE DEMAND
BETTER, THAT WE HAVE REAL
ACCOUNTABILITY... TO MAKE SURE
THAT THE INFORMATION WE DO KEEP
CAN LEAD US TO
BETTER RESULTS IN EACH ONE OF
OUR
OUR
COMMUNITIES. HOUSTON "TEXAS HAS BEEN IN THE DARK, I
GUESS I WOULD SAY,
WHEN IT COMES TO THE USE OF DATA
AND THE CORRECT
COLLECTION OF DATA.
R
REPRESENTATIVE COLEMAN ALSO
RECENTLY INTRODUCED A
NEW PARTNERSHIP FROM TEXAS A&M
TO ANALYZE
LAW ENFORCEMENT RACIAL PROFILING
DATA.
HE SAYS HE NOW WANTS TO INCLUDE
THE POLICE CUSTODY DEATHS DATA
TO STUDY FOR TRENDS THAT
COULD HELP WITH BETTER TRAINING
OF POLICE
OFFICERS.
FOR THE KVUE DEFENDERS, I'M BRAD
STREICHER,
KVUE NEWS.
KVUE NEWS. IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING YOU'D LIKE
THE DEFENDERS TO INVESTIGATE. WE WANT TO HEAR
FROM YOU.
YOU CAN TEXT US AT THE NUMBER
YOU SEE ON