LA MARQUE — About 60 people marched on the La Marque police station and city hall Thursday afternoon protesting the police department’s handling of a case involving a man who died after getting into a fight with police and shocked with a Taser gun.
Jamaal Valentine died Sunday night after the incident in which three La Marque police officers tried to arrest him after people reporting him walking down the middle of main street and rolling in the grass on the side of the road. One of those eye witnesses said that he called police asking for medical help for Valentine who claimed he thought he was having a heart attack.
The Galveston County Medical Examiner has yet to rule on the cause of death or if the use of the Taser resulted in Valentine’s death.
Glen Wilson, the owner of a barber’s school across the street from the La Marque police station, organized Thursday’s protest.
“We are going to picket in front of the La Marque Police Department to let them know that the community is very aware of what happened and we want to know something is going to get done,” Wilson said.
Demanding DPS investigate
Wilson, a former Galveston County Sheriff’s deputy and La Marque school district police officer, said the group also was demanding that the investigation into the incident be taken out of the hands of the Galveston County District Attorney and turned over to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Plenty Of Onlookers
The protest was uneventful but drew plenty of onlookers as the procession moved from the police station to the steps of city hall, where Mayor Geraldine Sam was waiting.
The recently sworn in mayor urged the protesters to be patient.
“Our city is not touching this investigation,” Sam said. “All we are asking is that everyone remain calm until we all find out what happened in this situation. After then we will know which direction to take.”
Councilman Keith Bell, who joined Sam in meeting with the protesters, said despite accusations that police overreacted, the officers involved deserve the city’s support.
“Until we do know something different, we have to support our officers because as citizens we want our officers to be there for us in times of need to protect us,” Bell said.
Councilwoman Connie Trube also showed up at city hall during the protest, but she kept her distance and did not address the crowd.
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On the Web
Watch video of the protest and interviews with the mayor and protest organizers in the Between the Lines blog at galvnews.com.
