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The memorial service for Sandra Bland took place Tuesday, July 21, 2015, at Prairie View A&M University in Prairie View, Texas. Bland 28, was found dead in her cell three days after a July 10, 2015, traffic stop.(Photo: KHOU-TV, Houston)
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas — The Texas Department of Public Safety said Wednesday that the video they released Tuesday of the confrontation between a Texas state trooper and motorist Sandra Bland was not edited or manipulated.
The video released Tuesday shows<span style="color: Red;">*</span>that the confrontation began after Bland expressed irritation at being pulled over July 10 for not signaling a lane change and then balked when Trooper Brian Encinia asked her to put out her cigarette.
Department<span style="color: Red;">*</span>spokesman Tom Vinger said Wednesday that glitches in the recording occurred when it was uploaded for public viewing. The video has drawn criticism for having gaps and overlaps.
The release of the 52-minute footage came hours after the Waller County Sheriff's Office released surveillance video from inside the county jail the morning Bland, 28, of Naperville, Ill., was found dead in her cell three days after the traffic stop here, about 50 miles northwest of Houston.
USA TODAY
Dash-cam video shows arrest of Sandra Bland
The Harris County medical examiner later ruled<span style="color: Red;">*</span>her death a suicide, hanging via the black plastic bag used to create privacy for cellmates. Bland was in jail<span style="color: Red;">*</span>waiting to post<span style="color: Red;">*</span>bond when she was found.
Legal analyst Gerald Treece said the video of the arrest is enough to take the Texas Department of Public Safety into a civil courtroom.
"You asked me if she has a case, yes," said Treece. "Will she win? That's a different thing."
Frame grab from a handout dash camera video released July 21, 2015, showing the traffic stop by Trooper Brian Encinia, left, of Sandra Bland, who later died in jail.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Texas Department of Public Safety)
Treece has problems with the behavior of the trooper involved after Bland refused to put out her cigarette and asked why she was being arrested.
"Everybody just<span style="color: Red;">*</span>listen up to this, under the Fourth Amendment, the citizen doesn't have to say anything," Treece said. "It's the government that has to explain its conduct is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment."
The department said its trooper did not adequately explain consequences to Bland and also broke policy.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>However, Treece did not see grounds for her arrest on video.
"Just based on her failure to cooperate, that would justify her getting a ticket, a citation," Treece said. "But, I don't see it. I don't see what happens off camera."
The trooper ordered<span style="color: Red;">*</span>her to the sidewalk, out of view of his dash-cam, and<span style="color: Red;">*</span>handcuffed<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Bland, who continues to protest her arrest.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>She complained<span style="color: Red;">*</span>about the handcuffs being too tight, and some kind of struggle can be heard on the audio.
USA TODAY
Family of woman found dead in jail orders new autopsy
According to his signed affidavit, Encinia claims Bland kicked him. So far, prosecutors see no inconsistencies in his sworn statements.
Steven McCraw, director of the Department of Public Safety, said Tuesday that the trooper was in the wrong.
"A DPS state trooper has an obligation to exhibit professionalism and be courteous throughout the entire contact and that wasn't the case here," said McCraw.
State Sen. Royce West, a Democrat from Dallas,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>said he doesn't believe Bland should have<span style="color: Red;">*</span>been taken into custody at all. He and others insist this investigation will be transparent.
"Wherever the facts lead, we want to make certain no stone is unturned," said West.
Treece believes the trooper's discipline record will be key in whether<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Bland's family sues.
"Has this officer had a bad track record on discipline and yet continues to be put out in the field," Treece asked. "That's probably what it's going to take."
Meanwhile Tuesday, family members attended a memorial service for Bland in the chapel on the campus of Prairie View A&M University, Bland's alma mater.
During the service, Geneva Reed-Veal, Bland's mother, spoke about the ongoing investigation.
"There is not anywhere that I can see that my baby took her own life," she said.
Bland's family has said she would not have committed suicide. She had just accepted a job at Prairie View A&M and was eager to start a new life in Texas.
USA TODAY
Sandra Bland death triggers #IfIDieInPoliceCustody trend
Reed-Veal explained Bland's decision to return to Texas.
"My purpose is to go back to Texas," said Reed-Veal about Bland. "My purpose is to stop all social injustice in the south."
The attorney for Bland's family said<span style="color: Red;">*</span>her body has been flown back to Chicago in preparation for her funeral.
Cannon Lambert said in an email Wednesday that Bland's family flew home from Texas on the same flight.
Her funeral will take place Saturday morning in Chicago.
Contributing: Michael Winter, USA TODAY; The Associated Press.
Related:
USA TODAY
Texas: Trooper in traffic stop violated policy
USA TODAY
Family: Jailed woman wouldn't have committed suicide
TEXAS WOMAN SANDRA BLAND DIES IN POLICE CUSTODYJail video released from morning of Sandra Bland's death | 01:44Surveillance video from inside the Waller County, Texas jail where Sandra Bland was found hanging in her cell offers more information about what happened the morning she was found dead. VPC
TEXAS WOMAN SANDRA BLAND DIES IN POLICE CUSTODYNew dashcam video details Sandra Bland's arrest | 04:09Texas authorities have released the dashcam video of Sandra Bland's arrest during a traffic stop on July 10. Bland was later found dead in her jail cell.
TEXAS WOMAN SANDRA BLAND DIES IN POLICE CUSTODYVideo Released From Jail In Sandra Bland Case | 00:52Authorities in Texas have released a video covering the three hours before Sandra Bland was found dead in her jail cell. (July 20) AP
TEXAS WOMAN SANDRA BLAND DIES IN POLICE CUSTODYDeath of inmate Sandra Bland won't be 'swept under rug' | 01:31The Texas Department of Public Safety announced that the trooper who pulled over, and later arrested, Sandra Bland violated procedures. Bland was later found hanging in her jail cell. VPC
TEXAS WOMAN SANDRA BLAND DIES IN POLICE CUSTODYProtesters Question Woman's Death in Texas Jail | 01:55Those who knew Sandra Bland said she would not have killed herself inside a Texas jail cell, not even over the traffic stop that led to her arrest, which mirrored the ones she railed against online. (July 18) AP
TEXAS WOMAN SANDRA BLAND DIES IN POLICE CUSTODYFBI investigates hanging death of woman inside jail | 01:27The FBI is investigating the death of Sandra Bland. She was arrested in Waller County, Texas after a routine traffic stop but was found hanging in her jail cell days later. VPC
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