BURLESON CO. RESPONDS TO CHESTER JACKSON LAWSUIT, MOVES CASE TO FEDERAL COURT
Burleson County has issued its first response to a civil lawsuit filed by the family of Chester Jackson, Jr., and has moved the case to federal court in Austin.
In the county’s response to the suit, which was originally filed in February in 335th District Court, it denies all of the allegations presented and indicates the county is not liable. The response also cites sovereign immunity for the county, as well as “sovereign, governmental and/or prosecutorial immunities from the suit”.
The county’s response also says Jackson’s claim that his constitutional rights were violated is not ready to be considered until a conviction in his criminal case is “overturned or otherwise expunged”. Jackson is currently facing a felony charge of assaulting a public servant for allegedly biting a Burleson County Jail staff member while in custody.
The county also motioned to move the case to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas in Austin, arguing that because Jackson is claiming his Fourth Amendment rights were violated, there is federal jurisdiction for this case.
Jackson, represented by Houston attorney U.A. Lewis, is seeking punitive and exemplary damages, as well as apologies from Burleson County and the City of Caldwell for the transgressions that occurred while he was in custody. He is also asking that policies and procedures be implemented so that similar events do not occur again.
The county and the city are both named as defendants in the case, along with former Sheriff Thomas Norsworthy, former Caldwell Police Sergeant Robert Baucom, and former Sheriff’s Deputy John Bennett. The plaintiffs in the case are Jackson, Chester Jackson, Sr., and Eddie Lee Wilson.
The lawsuit alleges Bennett failed to recognize Jackson was suffering a mental health crisis during his arrest in April 2019 on a public intoxication charge, falsely identifying Jackson’s condition as PCP intoxication. It also claims Baucom, the officer who was seen on body camera footage pushing Jackson while he was handcuffed inside a jail cell, was inadequately trained by the city and Burleson County in regards to use of force. Baucom was later sentenced to a year of probation and forced to surrender his peace officer’s license, after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of Official Oppression.
After a short stay at the county jail, Jackson was transported by deputies to Cross Creek Psychiatric Hospital in Austin. After losing consciousness there after being sedated and put into a hold, he was then taken to St. David’s Hospital in Austin in critical condition. According to a prepared statement by then-District Attorney Julie Renken, a grand jury found no evidence that Baucom’s actions caused Jackson’s medical condition.
Regarding Jackson’s criminal case, a non-trial status hearing has been scheduled by District Judge Reva Towslee Corbett for May 4th at 1:30 p.m., after initially being scheduled in February.