The mother of a woman who died while in custody at Tarrant County Jail is suing the county and 10 jailers two years after her death.
Chasity Bonner, 35, died in jail custody on May 27, 2024. Her mother, LaMonica Bratton, filed the federal lawsuit alleging the jail and its staff violated Bonner's civil rights when they refused to provide her with proper medical aid that resulted in her death.
The suit also claims the county has refused to provide Bonner's family with the full footage leading up to Bonner' death. The county redacted three minutes of security camera footage leading up to Bonner's death for "reasons unknown," the suit says.
"Eleven days after Chasity Bonner was booked into the Tarrant County Jail, she left out in a body bag," the suit read. "Two years later, Chasity’s family are still being denied access to the records that support witness accounts of what happened to Chasity because Sheriff Waybourn and those in charge have figured out a strategy to prevent those harmed by the actions of the County from having any recourse."
The Tarrant County Sheriff's Office declined to comment to KERA News.
Bonner was booked into the county jail May 16, 2024 over an alleged parole violation. While in custody, Bonner became "extremely ill under suspicious circumstances," but wasn't examined by medical staff until the day of her death, according to the suit.
Bonner died from atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, which is a buildup of cholesterol in the arteries that causes obstructed blood flow, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office.
Bratton previously said Bonner didn't have any heart problems — and claims in the suit drugs supplied by jailers were found in her daughter's cell.
"According to multiple eyewitnesses’ accounts, jailers brought drugs into the TCJ and provided them to inmates for profit," the suit alleges.
And, the suit claims county commissioners have failed to implement the necessary policies, training, and supervision of jailers.
County Commissioner Alisa Simmons said in a statement she stands with Bonner's family.
"No family should have to hire lawyers, file open records requests, and endure years of delays simply to understand how their loved one died while in government custody," Simmons said. "The questions surrounding Chasity's death remain deeply troubling."
The county is also fighting to stay off another federal lawsuit from the family of Anthony Johnson Jr., who died in April 2024 after a jailer kneeled on his back for more than a minute.
Penelope Rivera is KERA's Tarrant County Accountability Reporter. Got a tip? Email Penelope Rivera at privera@kera.org.
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