Sandra Bland Dashcam Video: Police Officer Tells Sandy To Put Out Cigarette, Get Out The Car – Action Escalates With Taser [Video]
Several videos from the Sandra Bland case are making the news, with the initial cell phone video of Bland being held down on the ground by Texas cops starting it all, as reported by the Inquisitr. In Texas, on her way to begin a new job at Prairie View A&M University, 28-year-old Sandra had traveled from the Chicago area when she was stopped for reportedly failing to signal when changing lanes. In that video, Bland could be heard complaining that the police were treating her roughly and had slammed her head on the ground — stating that she had lost feeling in parts of her body.
Update: The Bland traffic stop video has been released. Warning: Contains offensive language:
A second video released by Texas authorities from jail, as reported by the Associated Press, shows Bland’s jail cell, and EMTs taking a gurney to Sandra’s cell after she was found dead. The surveillance video purports to show that no one entered Sandy’s jail cell during a certain period of time, as if this would absolve the jail employees or police from any responsibility in her death. Sandra was found in a semi-standing position, reports the jail authorities. Investigators into Bland’s death have stated that it’s too soon to determine if Sandra’s cause of death was actually suicide or something more sinister.
Meanwhile, NBC News reports the incidents that appear on the dashcam footage of Bland’s arrest, a video that is expected to be released Tuesday. (Check for the Bland dashcam video on YouTube.)
Cannon Lambert, the Bland family attorney, reports seeing the dashcam footage, which shows the police officer approaching the passenger side of Sandra’s car and asking for her driver’s license and insurance. After Bland provides those things, the cop asks her to put out her cigarette — a request that started the path of violence that ensued.
“Why do I have to put out a cigarette when I’m in my own car?”
Lambert put forth that Sandy’s question seemed to irritate the officer, who then demanded Bland get out of her car.
“Get out of the car.”
The Houston-area recent resident was afraid to get out of the car, says Lambert, so the trooper tried to force Sandra to get out of the car by opening her door and demanding her to get out. As noted by the lawyer, there wasn’t a clear understanding of why Sandra was asked to get out of her car at all for the routine traffic stop.
The dashcam video also shows Sandra reaching for her cell phone to try and record what was happening, Lambert said in a Tom Joyner Morning Show interview. Afterward, the officer pointed a Taser at Bland and she got out of the car.
VIDEO: Texas authorities release video from jail In Sandra Bland case http://t.co/2exYWMo4mr
— The Associated Press (@AP) July 21, 2015
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