3 indicted jailers no longer at county lockup
“The mere fact that they’re charged with assault is a good step in the right direction.”
Randall Kallinen, civil rights lawyer
Three jailers indicted in the injury of 48-year-old Adael Gonzalez Garcia in November 2022 have been relieved of duty and are no longer working at the jail, officials with the Harris County Sheriff ’s Office said Friday.
The officers, charged with misdemeanor assault causing bodily injury, were relieved of duty, as required by sheriff ’s office protocol, about a week after a grand jury handed down the April 29 indictments, officials said in a news release.
“HCSO officers are entrusted to provide care and a safe environment for those in our custody,” the release stated. “We take these matters seriously and conduct an internal review of all use of force incidents. All employees are held accountable for their actions and must adhere to all protocols and policies.”
The detention officers, John Ziesemer, Ezihuo Osiminibeke and Jimmy Poole, were relieved May 4 and 6 after an internal investigation into Garcia’s injuries, officials said. The indictments were part of a use of force investigation, records show.
The grand jury took no action on a fourth detention officer, whom civil rights lawyer Randall Kallinen said surrendered a license that allowed him to be a jailer. The jury declined to indict a fifth individual in connection with Garcia’s injuries, Kallinen said. The sheriff ’s office did not elaborate on the status of their employment in a statement and could not be reached for additional comment.
Kallinen surmises that felony indictments could have been sought because of the severity of Garcia’s injuries but that the misdemeanor charges against the three detention officers would have been “more likely to be upheld.”
“The mere fact that they’re charged with assault is a good step in the right direction,” Kallinen said Friday during a news conference outside the jail.
Garcia also addressed the indictments, saying the injuries have had a lasting impact on his ability to find work.
“I thank God I’m alive,” Garcia said in Spanish. “My head still hurts, I get dizzy at times.”
He also disputed that he fell off the bed as described in the sheriff’s office account of what happened after his arrest on a Walker County warrant.
Garcia, who had been wanted on a misdemeanor DWI charge, was booked into the Harris County Jail. He purportedly fell from a top bunk bed and suffered an injury to his face. He was taken to the jail clinic for treatment. The next day, he was released from the clinic and was being escorted to another cell block when, jail staffers reported, he became combative and attempted to punch a detention officer. A struggle ensued, with Garcia falling and striking his head on the ground, authorities said.
Garcia was taken to Ben Taub Hospital, where he remained in a coma for several days.
The indictments contend that Osiminibeke and Poole struck Garcia’s head with their hands, while Ziesemer threw Garcia to the ground. The injuries put Garcia in a coma.
Kallinen, who represented Garcia in civil litigation against the county, said he requested to review surveillance video of the incident but he has yet to see it. He called on the sheriff ’s office Friday to require detention officers to wear body cameras, a protocol that the law enforcement agency is expected to adopt this year. More than 200 detention officers were outfitted with the cameras earlier this year.
Justin Keiter, who represents Ziesemer, described Garcia as “the aggressor,” alleging that he sucker-punched his client from behind while he was trying to leave the jail floor. Keiter said that he has watched surveillance footage showing that Ziesemer was acting in self-defense.
Ziesmer and Osiminibeke are expected in court next week, while Poole is scheduled to return to court in July. All three are free on bail.