The Family of Sandra Bland Awarded $1.9 Million in Wrongful Death Lawsuit

The family of Sandra Bland, the black woman who died in police custody after a routine traffic stop escalated into a violent interaction, reached what her mother calls a “monumental” $1.9 million wrongful death lawsuit settlement, a deal that includes sweeping changes to police practices in Waller County, TX.

Bland was detained after a minor traffic violation when the arresting officer failed to follow proper traffic stop procedures. The officer’s dashcam and a bystander’s cell phone footage captured the officer demanding Bland put out her cigarette and eventually threatening to “light [her] up” with a taser when she refused. The officer and Bland move out of the view of the camera, where Bland can be heard crying and screaming.

She was detained for three days in Waller County Jail, when she was found hanging with a trash bag around her neck. An autopsy ruled Bland’s death a suicide, but sources close to Bland dispute that characterization, insisting it’s unlikely she would have killed herself. A former guard admitted he never checked on Bland, despite falsifying records to show that he stopped by her cell an hour before her death.

A grand jury declined to issue an indictment in Bland’s death, but the arresting officer was indicted on perjury charges for lying about the circumstances surrounding the traffic stop. Bland’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit in January 2017.

“After talking to moms across the country, this is what we’ve been looking for,” Bland’s mother Reed-Veal told BuzzFeed News. “This is monumental. This is not just about me.”

The family attorney, Cannon Lambert, said the more significant impact of the wrongful death lawsuit is the impact it will have on police practices in Waller County. As Buzzfeed notes, the settlement includes pledges from the Waller County judge to push for increased funding for police training. It also requires the jail to maintain an on-call nurse and implement electronic cell checks.

“Those things, over and above the $1.9 million are historic,” Lambert said.

Reed-Veal said she hopes the changes “will set a precedent across the country.”

 “People won’t be satisfied with just money,” she said. We need to make sure that they are making change that will save lives.”