Texas Fires Trooper Who Arrested Sandra Bland

Updated: January 7, 2016, 7:20 AM

Hours after a grand jury indicted the Texas State Trooper who arrested Sandra Bland, the Texas Department of Public Safety said it would “begin termination proceedings” against the officer, reports The Associated Press.

The trooper, Brian Encinia, has been on paid desk duty since Bland was found dead in her cell.

SOURCE: ABC NEWS 

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Brian Encinia, the Texas State Trooper who arrested Sandra Bland last year, has been indicted on a perjury charge, a Class A misdemeanor that carries a possible one-year prison sentence.

A Texas grand jury resumed investigation into the arrest of Bland this week. The 28-year-old was found in a Waller County jail cell with a plastic bag tied around her neck, just three days after her detainment. Encinia, who was seen on dash cam video roughly handling Bland during a traffic stop, initially pulled her over for failure to signal. The Illinois resident was moving to Texas to start a new job in July when she was arrested.

Encinia, seen on the video pulling Bland out of the vehicle while yelling “I will light you up,” is accused of lying about how he removed the woman from the car.

The announcement comes just weeks after a grand jury failed to indict jail employees on criminal charges. Days after jurors decided not to issue indictments in connection with Bland’s death, lawyers for her family urged prosecutors to file criminal charges against Encinia.

This is a developing story.

SOURCE: Click2Houston, NYT | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty

SEE ALSO:

Sandra Bland’s Family Seeks Criminal Charges Against Texas Trooper

Bernie Sanders On Grand Jury Decision: Sandra Bland “Would Be Alive Today If She Were A White Woman”