SANDRA BLAND’S MOTHER URGES COMMITTEE TO PASS REFORM BILL
Nearly two years after Sandra Bland was found dead in a Waller County jail cell, her mother travelled to the capitol to ask lawmakers to pass a bill named for her daughter.
On Tuesday, Geneva Reed-Veal told lawmakers on the House Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety that the Sandra Bland Act would help change a “broken system” she said contributed to her daughter’s death.
The bill, filed by Rep. Garnet Coleman, would increase officer training in mental health awareness, racial profiling prevention, and de-escalation tactics. In addition, the bill would prevent arrests for fine-only offenses.
The bill would also introduce changes in rural jails across the state. The changes, which have been implemented in the Waller County Jail since Bland’s death, include swipe cards that would prohibit guards from falsifying cell checks and the creation of a new comprehensive jail intake form. It would also require the Texas Commission on Jail Standards to develop rules to require 24-hour mental health professional access for inmates.
In July 2015, 28-year-old Bland ended up in jail for resisting arrest after a traffic stop. She was found asphyxiated in her cell three days later. Her death was ruled a suicide.
“I would like to thank Geneva Reed-Veal, Sandra Bland's mother, and all who came out in support of the Sandra Bland Act” said Rep. Coleman. “It is time that we make progress in criminal justice reform that will keep both law enforcement and citizens safe to prevent future tragedies like Sandra Bland's."
Why didn’t her family or boyfriend bail her out? I have never understood that.
It is well known to police officers that when someone lights up a cigarette when they get pulled over they are usually trying to cover up the smell of something else (of course not all the time). That immediately makes officers suspicious when someone does that… Just saying.
Did you see the video? I don’t care if she was smoking weed. She has human rights. No woman should ever be treated like that. She posed no threat to him. I will NEVER forget what I saw in that video. You cannot cover your eyes my friend.
Ms. Bland should not have been arrested, the officer handled the road stop completely wrong, check the online videos out for yourself. However, Ms. Bland is the cause of her own death. There is no need for more laws or for the taxpayers to have to pay another dime related to this case. Her family has already been made wealthy from the lawsuits. Enough is enough!
I don’t know what videos you watch but the one I saw showed Ms Bland not cooperating with the police officer and then having a disrespectful attitude towards the officer. I think this whole situation was blown out of proportion paying the family for her hanging herself is just nuts
I appreciate the perspective of “retired”. The video I watched did show Ms. Bland behaving in a belligerent way and being disrespectful at points. I believe the officer handled this badly by ordering her not to smoke in her own car and escalating the situation ordering her out of the car for basically running a stop sign (and that was even somewhat questionable). I hate smoking but she had a right to smoke in her own car. He escalated the situation and made an unpleasant situation start a chain of events that ended tragically. With that being said, her family should have never been paid and we do not need this new law.
Times have changed retired, being disrespectful to police officers is the new norm. If you aren’t being rude and are actually respectful then the police officer might think you are trying to hide something.
I totally disagree Felicia. With my family and everyone I associate with, being respectful to everyone one including police officers is still the norm. We all still deserve to be treated with dignity and respect!!!! That same officer who gets disrespected and talked down to is the same officer who will lay his life down for you. Just as you wouldn’t want someone to come up to you and be disrespectful, neither do they. God bless the law enforcement!
Oh, I know. This was my sarcastic way of saying if you are disrespectful then you might just get what you deserve.
I believe it is ridiculous also. Whether she deserved to be arrested or not, she would have been able to have her day in court. There was no foul play as far as her death and I believe it is ridiculous that so much money has been wasted trying to prove wrongful death. This case stirred up so much mess in our State as well as the entire country and caused several innocent people to be killed. Sandra Bland is being perceived as a hero and I feel that should not be the case. She chose to end her life because no one would bond her out of jail, I don’t wish anyone to die, however, I am tired of others placing blame on the wrong people. Where would Sandra be today had her family bonded her out of jail and not left her in there for three days??? Instead of the family blaming everyone else, they need to start asking themselves questions!
That’s the whole point of the bill. Did you even read this? It is for assessing mental health. Have you been to a small Texas town? You cannot cover your eyes.