11:23 AM CDT on Saturday, June 13, 2009
By T.J. Aulds / The Daily News
LA MARQUE — The family of a Texas City man who died after he was shocked by a police officer’s Taser is supporting the Galveston County District Attorney’s decision to fight the release of information on how the man died.
Jamaal Valentine, 27, died May 17 at Mainland Medical Center after going into cardiac arrest while being taken to the hospital for treatment for cuts he received while wrestling with La Marque police.
While an autopsy is complete, Galveston County Medical Examiner Dr. Stephen Pustilnik said he was advised by the county attorney not to release the report or even confirm how Valentine died at the request of Galveston County District Attorney Kurt Sistrunk.
Sistrunk has asked the Texas attorney general to support his claim that the autopsy should not be released to the public because of the investigation into Valentine’s death.
The county and the district attorney are asking that even the most basic information be withheld until the investigation is complete.
Sistrunk argued that any information about the cause of death or details from the autopsy could taint statements from witnesses as his office and the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office investigate.
After at first agreeing Friday morning to release information on the cause of death, Pustilnik retracted the offer after the county’s legal office advised him to honor Sistrunk’s request.
Sistrunk said his office needed to follow up with witnesses and hoped new witnesses would come forward. He said he didn’t want those people to be influenced by facts being “made public that aren’t public yet.”
The Daily News plans to challenge the district attorney and county’s argument that all of the information contained in the autopsy report, including the cause of death, can be withheld, Charles Daughtry, the newspaper’s attorney said.
Editor Heber Taylor said the newspaper was not interested in information that would jeopardize the investigation.
“But there’s a larger public policy issue here,” Taylor said. “Many members of the community were so upset by the facts of this case that Geraldine Sam, the new mayor of La Marque, found herself speaking at a public protest, asking for calm and for trust for the police department.
A man who told a passing motorist he might be having heart attack died after being shocked with a Taser by police. I think the public has an interest in knowing what caused his death.
“It’s a contradiction to me — asking for public trust on one hand and being unwilling to give even the most basic information about what caused this man’s death.”
Still, the district attorney’s challenge is supported by Valentine’s family, attorney Chad Pinkerton said. The family was told this week what the medical examiner determined caused Valentine’s death.
“Due to the state of the investigation and as a courtesy, my law firm and the family have agreed to keep the nature of the findings confidential until a later date,” Pinkerton said. “Our job is not to incite the public or bring about outrage in the community. What we want to do is find the truth. We want to finish the investigation first.”
The La Marque Police Department and the three officers involved in the Valentine case have come under fire for their tactics, including the use of a Taser to subdue Valentine.
Police claim that during a struggle Valentine tried several times to grab for one of the officer’s firearms.
However, a witness said he called police after Valentine came up to him and asked for help because he thought he was having a heart attack.
The witness said police overreacted to what he said was a medical emergency.
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