Jeanette Williams places a bouquet of roses at a memorial for Sandra Bland near A&M University, in Prairie View, Texas. (AP/Pat Sullivan)
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday signed into law a measure that seeks to address the circumstances that led to the death of Sandra Bland, a black woman found dead in a county jail days after being arrested during a routine traffic stop.
A few hundred supporters stand holding lit candles as they listen to comments from speakers during a vigil for Jordan Edwards in Balch Springs, Texas, Thursday, May 4, 2017. (AP/Tony Gutierrez)
Days after a Dallas-area police officer shot and killed a black 15-year-old in the passenger seat of a car, the Texas Legislative Black Caucus and other lawmakers made an emotional plea to state leaders Thursday morning to act to prevent police shootings.
(REPORT) — State Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, on Thursday filed House Bill 2702, dubbed the Sandra Bland Act.
The exhaustive piece of legislation would expand what qualifies as racial and ethnic profiling; mandate people experiencing a mental health crisis and substance abuse be diverted to treatment over jail; and create more training and reporting requirements for county jails and law enforcement.
