Prosecutors have dropped the perjury charge against the police officer who arrested Sandra Bland, a black woman who was arrested at a traffic stop and later was found dead in jail.

The officer, Brian Encinia, only faced a single charge of perjury for lying during the investigation into the arrest. He agreed to surrender his officer license and never work in law enforcement again in exchange for the charge to be dropped. But the case will permanently show on his record.

In July 2015, Encinia pulled Bland over on a road near Houston, Texas, as she didn’t use her indicator when switching lanes. She said she was trying to get away from the police vehicle, as it had come up very close to her car and wouldn’t stop following her. When Bland was pulled over, Encinia asked her to put out her cigarette.

But she refused. In the audio from the dashcam footage you can hear how he violently pulls her out of her vehicle and slams her to the ground. She can be heard complaining about her wrist being bent to the point of breaking, and saying she can no longer hear.

Encinia also threatened to “light [her] up” with his taser gun. He also said “good” after Bland explains she has epilepsy. After taking Bland into custody, Encinia can be heard laughing and debating what he will charge her with–resisting arrest or assault.

It’s not enough. These officers need to be held accountable for murdering Black people. Anything less than that is unacceptable.

— Dr. SaVonni Yestanti (@SaVonniYestanti) June 29, 2017

Three days later, jail staff found Bland dead in her cell, hanging with a plastic bag around her neck. The official explanation was that she committed suicide. But her family has doubted that claim, saying that she had just gotten a new job and wouldn’t want to die. In July 2016, another officer claimed that officials tried to make him keep quiet about circumstances surrounding Bland’s time in jail.

The officer claimed he had seen marks on Bland’s forehead, and said that Encinia made up a charge of assaulting a public servant to justify why she would be detained for so long. After the dashcam footage was made public, Encinia was charged with perjury. He reportedly lied in a sworn affidavit in which he wrote that Bland was “combative and uncooperative” at the time of the arrest. But he never faced any assault charges.

No members of the jail staff faced any charges at all, even though they knew Bland had expressed suicidal thoughts before and had a history of depression. A lot of people do not think justice has been served, and Bland’s family has criticized the single perjury charge.

“We understand that this is far from a perfect solution, and that many people will feel that this is an inadequate punishment, while others feel that charges should have never been filed,” prosecutors in Encinia’s case said on Wednesday.

Rep. @GFColeman, author of Sandra Bland Act: “I’m sorry to Ms. Bland’s family for how poorly Texas has treated their loved one.” #txlege pic.twitter.com/DptVePBI06

— Chuck Lindell (@chucklindell) June 28, 2017

The one good thing that came out of this tragic case was the creation of the Sandra Bland Act, which Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed into law two weeks ago. The new law will require county jails to divert people that suffer from mental health issues or substance abuse to treatment. It will also require law enforcement to investigate any deaths that occur in jail. The law will go into effect on September 1.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Ever since Floyd “Money” Mayweather defeated Manny “Pac-Man” Pacquiao in the supposed “Fight of the Century,” boxing’s fans have wondered if Mayweather would squash retirement rumors for a future Pacquiao rematch. However, the Filipino welterweight might be facing perjury charges instead of a rematch, after news broke that he lied about an existing severe shoulder injury on his pre-fight medical questionnaire.

Manny Pacquiao could be prosecuted for perjury after failing to disclose shoulder injury http://t.co/jrM7jV8jVS pic.twitter.com/7kVf3rNbUV

— Telegraph Sport (@TelegraphSport) May 5, 2015

On his questionnaire Pacquiao checked “no” for a question asking whether or not he suffered any shoulder injuries, but after the fight he complained that shoulder pain had inhibited his performance during the fight. Monday, Pacquiao confirmed that he had suffered a severe tear in his rotator cuff that would require surgery and 9-12 months of rehabilitation. As it turns out, Pacquiao had been suffering from the severe shoulder injury since early April, but chose to fight injured in lieu of forfeiting a $300 million pay day split with Mayweather. According to the New York Daily News, Cisco Aguilar, the Nevada Athletic Commissioner chairman, said late Monday:

Disclosure is a big thing for us, and honesty. The commission at some point will have to discuss [Pacquiao’s medical questionnaire]. I’ve got to run through the process with the [Nevada] Attorney General [Adam Laxalt]. But they do sign that document under the penalty of perjury.”

Because he lied on his medical form, it’s rumored that the Nevada Athletic Commission could end up slapping Pacquiao with a hefty fine or even issue him a suspension. There could also be a licensing issue if Pacquiao’s lawyer signed the fraudulent questionnaire.

But that’s not all Pacquiao has to worry about. According to Time magazine, Stephane Vanel and Kami Rahbaran, “on behalf of all persons who purchased tickets; purchased the pay per view event or who wagered money on the event,” named Pacquiao in a $5 million class action lawsuit that claims damages for those who “were victimized by [the] Defendants’ failure to disclose and to cover up the injuries of Defendant Pacquiao.” There is huge possibility that Pacquiao could end up having to pay, reports the New York Daily News, pointing out:

There is case law that supports a possible class-action suit, where ticket holders could argue they didn’t get what was promised – had Pacquiao been 100% healthy, it could have been a more entertaining fight.

Apparently, fight officials weren’t made aware of Pacquiao’s injury until just hours before the scheduled match when he asked if he could take an anti-inflammatory shot, which was approved by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, to alleviate his shoulder pain.

Mayweather has hinted he’d be down for a rematch, but the real question is whether or not people would even be interested. Poor performance, insane pay-per-view costs, and Pacquiao’s controversy may have very well been the final nails in professional boxing’s coffin.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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The nightmare of the Steubenville Rape Case isn’t quite over for the small Ohio town. On October 7, 2013, another arrest was made in the case, this time of a 53-year-old man named William Rhinaman. Rhinaman is the director of technology at Steubenville High School. He has been indicted for tampering with evidence, obstructing justice, obstructing official business, and perjury.

Rhinaman was not the only adult in Steubenville to lie, refuse to talk, or tamper with evidence. As Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine told CNN, sixteen different adults refused to talk to investigators. A grand jury, formed on March 17, will determine if any of these others committed indictable crimes. They are mostly looking at whether any employees failed to report a rape they knew had occurred. Rhinaman was the first to face charges, but more may be to come.

AG Mike DeWine will not elaborate on what exactly Rhinaman covered up or what perjured statements he provided, but he did state that the charges are directly related to Rhinaman’s job as an Internet Technology employee. The indictment claims that Rhinaman’s involvement in the case began with the night that the rape occurred—August 11, 2012.

Immediately after being arrested, Rhinamen was held in a local jail without bond. He had a hearing on Wednesday, October 9 in which he was let out on a $25,000 personal recognizance bond.

The Steubenville case took the nation by storm. It was unthinkable—everyone who saw the news footage was horrified that two young men could sexually abuse a 16 year old girl, and that dozens of their peers could stand by and watch it happen. But in a lot of ways the media was more shocked by the way in which the rape was discovered. All of these young people who were present at the party in which the rape occurred took pictures, tweeted about it, texted about it, and generally communicated through social media.

The screen shots that some bloggers managed to grab of the blatant online conversations that these young people had were horrifying. But what is most horrifying is that they thought this was acceptable. Now the world discovers that not only did these teenagers feel this was acceptable, but also that the other adults in their lives perpetrated this despicable cover up. If any of these 16 adults who are being investigated by the grand jury did in fact help a group of young adults cover up the sexual abuse of another, they deserve to face the full force of the law.

[CNN]

—

Featured image courtesy of [John Perry via Flickr]

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

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