Texas trooper faces perjury charge

HOUSTON — The Texas state trooper who pulled over Sandra Bland was indicted on suspicion of perjury Wednesday, making him the only official criminally charged after Bland’s death last summer fueled criticism of police and their treatment of minorities.

Trooper Brian T. Encinia could face a maximum of a year in jail if convicted of the misdemeanor charge, according to a Waller County district attorney’s spokesman, Warren Diepraam.

Also Wednesday, the Texas Department of Public Safety announced that it would begin proceedings to fire Encinia.

Bland, 28, who was African American, was found dead in her jail cell three days after Encinia arrested her on July 10 during a routine traffic stop about 55 miles west of Houston. Her death was ruled a suicide.

Encinia pulled Bland over for making an improper lane change. The confrontation that ensued, which led to Bland’s arrest on suspicion of assaulting Encinia, was captured on a dashboard camera.

Bland was taken to the Waller County Jail in nearby Hempstead, where she was unable to make $500 bail. Officials said she hanged herself with a plastic bag.

Bland’s family and Black Lives Matter supporters questioned why she had been arrested at all, with some questioning whether she had taken her own life. At the time Bland was stopped, she had just accepted a job at her alma mater, Prairie View A&M University.

The grand jury’s indictment came after it decided last month that no felony was committed by the Waller County Sheriff ’s Office or jailers in connection with Bland’s death.

Cannon Lambert, an attorney for the Bland family, had not been hopeful that the grand jury would indict Encinia. He said Encinia should have been charged with false arrest, battery and abuse of police powers.

A representative for Encinia could not be reached for comment Wednesday.