On July 10, Bland’s car was pulled over for failing to signal by a Texas state trooper who arrested the 28-year-old after they had an altercation. The woman appears to have hanged herself three days later while she was confined in a cell. Her relatives have demanded an investigation.
The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) has been alerted to a series of continuity problems in the 52-minute dashcam footage of Bland’s arrest, which it published on its YouTube channel on Tuesday. The agency said it was looking into the allegations. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is also involved in the probe.
According to the Los Angeles Times, cars and people can be seen disappearing and reappearing at random moments throughout the video. The audio track, which ends more than a minute before the video does, has no breaks and continues through the apparent gaps, the outlet pointed out.
The suspicious suicide of the black woman in police custody has reignited concerns over US police violence that triggered waves of protests across the United States.
Over the past year, US President Barack Obama has launched several policy initiatives in the wake of renewed calls to counter police racial bias. The initiatives include investing in police body-worn cameras for US law enforcement agencies across the country, and a plan to address segregation in US neighborhoods.
