The Texas trooper who arrested Sandra Bland during a heated traffic stop has been charged with perjury, court records indicate.
Texas Department of Public Safety is looking to fire the arresting officer, Brian Encinia, from the department, the Waller County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
Bland was found hanging in her cell jail three days after she was arrested on July 10.
Encinia initially pulled 28-year-old Bland over in Prairie View, Texas for changing lanes improperly. Authorities at the time said she was “argumentative” and “uncooperative.”
Encinia was seen on dashboard camera saying that he would “light” her “up”, apparently with a stun gun.
A grand jury cleared the Waller County Sheriff’s Office and jail staff of any wrongdoing in Bland’s death, which was ruled a suicide. The jail is located about 50 miles northwest of Houston.
Encinia was placed on desk duty for alleged violations of Department of Public Safety rules one week after he arrested Bland.
Further details were not immediately available about the perjury charge, a misdemeanor.
Encinia could not immediately be reached for comment. It was not clear if he had representation.(JULIA JACOBO)
Link: http://abcnews.go.com/US/trooper-arrested-sandra-bland-faces-perjury-charges-records/story?id=36128586
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