(AURN News) — On July 13, 2015, Sandra Bland died in a Waller County, Texas, jail cell, three days after a traffic stop escalated into her arrest.
Bland, a 28-year-old Black woman, had been pulled over for failing to signal a lane change. Video of the confrontation showed Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Brian Encinia threatening her with a Taser and removing her from the car.
On July 13, 2015, she was found hanging in her jail cell with a plastic trash bag around her neck. Officials ruled her death a suicide, but her family and supporters questioned the circumstances surrounding her death and the jail’s treatment of her.
Her death became a symbol of police violence and the dangers Black women face in custody. In 2016, Bland’s family reached a $1.9 million wrongful-death settlement with Waller County. The agreement required changes to jail monitoring, medical staffing and inmate screening procedures.
Click play to listen to the AURN News report from Clay Cane. Follow @claycane & @aurnonline for more.
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