No Justice For Sandra Bland
Though the “Black Lives Matter” movement was spawned from the rampant brutality and excessive force exhibited by this nation’s police forces, the cops have not slowed down with violations of human rights. Seemingly, few police are actually punished for their crimes against humanity, as most offenders have walked free. This trend continues. The case of Sandra Bland, the Black woman found dead in her jail cell in Texas, has come to a close. No charges will be filed against anyone for her death.
This news comes to the dismay of all of Sandra Bland’s supporters, especially her family. It was the hope of many that someone would be brought to justice for her rough arrest and supposed suicide in Waller County jail in July. It is highly unlikely that a grown human being can hang themselves with a trash bag that they weren’t even supposed to have in a jail cell. However, a grand jury felt as though the evidence presented wasn’t strong enough to indict anyone for Bland’s death.
In her native Chicago, Bland’s family and friends protested the ruling, “saying they had ‘no confidence’ in what they described as a ‘tool of the prosecution,'” according to NBC News. Bland’s mother, Geneva Reed-Veal said, “I simply can’t have faith in a system that’s not inclusive of my family.”
“We feel like this whole effort to convene a grand jury was done for political reasons. They know that most people don’t know what goes on in a grand jury. When they do release the findings, they release evidence they deem [relevant],” said lawyer Cannon Lambert.
In a surprise statement, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders mildly condemned the ruling. “There’s no doubt in my mind that she, like too many African Americans who die in police custody, would be alive today if she were a white woman,” reads a statement from Sanders. “We need to reform a very broken criminal justice system.”
R.I.P. Sandra Bland
