The reports are available to anyone who asks, and under the law, the definition of “custody” includes police shootings.<\/p>\n\n\n
![\"Gilbert](\"https:\/\/www.johntedesco.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Gilbert-Flores-e1447803471680.jpg\")
Those “custodial death” reports came to mind this summer after two Bexar County deputies fatally shot a combative suspect, Gilbert Flores, moments after he raised his hands above his head in an apparent attempt to surrender. A bystander, Michael Thomas, recorded the shooting on his cell phone<\/a>, sold the video footage to KSAT-TV, and it became a national news story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office and the Bexar County district attorney refused to release any records about the shooting<\/a>. Since custodial death reports are filed with the Attorney General’s office, I bypassed the sheriff’s office and filed an open records request with the AG for the custodial death report for the Flores shooting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the AG’s office emailed me a copy of the report, there was a gaping hole<\/a>. At no point did it mention that Flores had his hands raised when he was shot. The sparsely worded narrative stated<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Officers were dispatched to 24414 Walnut Pass for a family violence call. Suspect attacked the officers with a knife and was shot by the officers after the suspect refused to drop the knife. Suspect resisted arrest.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Maybe it’s not surprising the sheriff’s office didn’t include that pertinent fact. But the omission raised a basic question: What exactly is required of a law enforcement agency when it files a custodial death report, and is anyone making sure the information is accurate?<\/p>\n\n\n\n A few Google searches and phone calls taught me a lot more about the law and the history of custodial death reports. For example, Texas law requires a \u201cgood faith effort to obtain all facts relevant to the death and include those facts in the report.\u201d It\u2019s a misdemeanor if the agency files the report but fails to include \u201cfacts known or discovered in the investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Related: Web tools and apps to track weather emergencies in Texas<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Using the eminently valuable website of the Texas Legislative Reference Library<\/a>, I tracked down who wrote the law and learned it was a former Bexar County lawmaker named Walter Martinez, who filed his bill in 1983 to help the public learn more about custodial deaths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “At the time, a pretty energetic prison reform movement was going on in the state,” Martinez told me. “We really didn\u2019t know what the record was with regard to deaths while in custody.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n When Martinez’s bill became law, it set up a potentially useful resource for anyone researching police use of force in Texas. But how well did law enforcement agencies actually follow the statute, and did they ever face any repercussions for failing to follow it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Those questions led to this news story<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Bexar County Sheriff\u2019s Office failed to file at least five state-mandated reports about people who died in police shootings since 2005, was late in filing a dozen more fatality reports and left out key details about two deadly shootings involving deputies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The missing details include how one suspect had his hands raised above his head when two deputies opened fire. In another case, a report didn\u2019t quote a deputy who can be heard on dash-camera video saying, \u201cHe started attacking me and I shot him.\u201d The deputy then swears, saying either \u201cFuck him\u201d or \u201cFuck it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Sheriff’s spokesman James Keith noted that the five missing reports of fatal shootings all occurred before Sheriff Susan Pamerleau took office Jan. 1, 2013. During her tenure, four custodial death reports were late. Keith blamed that on a misunderstanding that\u2019s been cleared up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe investigator didn\u2019t have a clear understanding of the law and the requirement that these had to be submitted within 30 days,\u201d Keith said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton\u2019s office doesn\u2019t take any steps to make sure law enforcement agencies are being diligent in filing the reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe are simply a repository for this information,\u201d spokeswoman Katherine Wise wrote in an email when asked if the attorney general\u2019s office has any system in place to flag late reports.<\/p>\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n While the AG doesn’t check how often reports are filed past the 30-day deadline, there’s a simple way to find out by using the agency’s own data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can request a copy of a large spreadsheet the AG compiles from the custodial death reports submitted by law enforcement agencies. This is a lot more detailed<\/a> than what the AG posts on its website<\/a>. Out of 4,250 death reports filed in Texas since 2005, the records show that law enforcement agencies filed nearly 700 reports \u2014 16 percent \u2014 after the 30-day deadline. Some reports were more than two years late. Here are some examples:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Missing information<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
Police accountability<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
![\"Texas](\"https:\/\/www.johntedesco.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Custodial-Death-Report1.png\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nLate custodial death reports in Texas<\/h3>\n\n\n\n