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In a highly anticipated decision earlier this week, the grand jury related to the death of Sandra Bland.Sandra Bland, a 28-year-old black woman, was arrested and charged with assaulting a public servant on July 10 in Prairie View, Texas. She had allegedly failed to use her turn signal while changing lanes and was pulled over. After her arrest, she went through intake and was booked into Waller County jail. Three days later she was found .
The medical examiner called it a 鈥渟uicide by asphyxiation.鈥� It appeared Bland had hanged herself with a plastic garbage bag accessible in her cell.
Bland was a 2009 graduate of and was returning to the predominantly black campus for a new career in the fall. She never made it to her new job. Her death became a rallying cry for the Black Lives Matter movement and across the U.S.
Bland鈥檚 family sued Waller County for negligence in her death, but . Instead, they blamed Bland鈥檚 family and friends for their unwillingness to post the $515 bond for her release.
But Monday night the by the Waller County sheriff鈥檚 office of the jailers in Bland鈥檚 treatment.
reporter has been reporting on Bland鈥檚 case. He says the reaction has been profound.
"Community reaction is pretty intense and obviously across social media there's a lot of outrage,鈥� Smith says. 鈥淲ith the family, I know they're somewhat disappointed. Their lawyer spoke to the press yesterday and called the grand jury a 鈥榮ham of a proceeding.鈥� So we're really going to have to see what happens going forward."
The attorney for Bland鈥檚 parents had a press conference earlier Monday, questioning why the grand jury was taking so long, and questioning the entire process. They mentioned the secrecy of the proceedings but Smith says grand jury proceedings are secretive by nature.
"We'll be reporting over the next couple of weeks, trying to learn more,鈥� he says. 鈥淭here will be more hearings鈥� next month and so there鈥檚 more detail to come out of that.鈥�
Bland鈥檚 parents have filed a civil lawsuit against the sheriff鈥檚 office. The grand jury will reconvene in January to decide if the white trooper who pulled Bland over, Brian Encinia, should face charges on how he conducted himself in the traffic stop. Until the grand jury reaches a decision on Encinia, he remains out of the field, but is still with the Department of Public Safety.
"[DPS] reviewed the stop. They found that he violated internal procedures, the Department's courtesy policy basically,鈥� Smith says. 鈥淭hey investigated him for 鈥榦fficial oppression鈥� 鈥� that would be the charge 鈥� and then forwarded those findings to the grand jury. He's been on administrative duties ever since.鈥�
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