A prominent Texas state senator has asked the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety to release any video it has of the arrest of a woman later found dead in a jail cell.
Sen. Royce West is one of two African American members of the 31-member Texas Senate.
In a letter, the Democrat from Dallas says the circumstances surrounding Sandra Bland's arrest and detainment "have raised a number of questions for numerous persons, none more than myself."
Bland was found dead Monday morning in a jail cell in Waller County, Texas, in what county officials say the death was a suicide by hanging. Her family and friends have expressed skepticism over the conclusion.
In his letter to Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw, West said he regards the death as "suspicious."
The death is being investigated by the Texas Rangers, which is part of the department.
West noted that Bland's death "comes months and weeks into what seems to be an unabated season of unfortunate police-citizen encounters."
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Royce West Letter to Steven McCraw 71615 (Text)
