AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore says the Williamson County Sheriff's Office is "stonewalling" an investigation into the death of a man while in custody last year.
Moore took to Twitter Monday afternoon to announce that Javier Ambler's death while in the custody of WCSO deputies on March 28, 2019, will be presented to a Travis County grand jury later this summer.
According to a custodial death report filed with the Texas Attorney General's office, a WCSO deputy attempted to stop Ambler for a traffic violation near FM 1325 and State Highway 45 just before 1:30 a.m. that morning. Ambler refused to stop, with the deputy pursuing Ambler into Travis County. According to the report, Ambler had three separate collisions with fixed objects on and off the roadway during the pursuit.
The pursuit ended near St. John's Avenue and Bethune Avenue in Austin, the report said, after a minor collision involving a small grove of trees. The deputy began to approach Ambler's vehicle, ordering him to exit and get on the ground. Ambler got out of his vehicle, but did not comply with the other commands. Two deputies then deployed their Tasers.
Once the deputies had Ambler in custody, they noticed he was unresponsive. "Deputies were unable to locate a pulse and began chest compressions until EMS arrived and took over life saving interventions," the report said. Ambler was transported to Dell Seton Medical Center and was pronounced deceased a short time later.
Later that morning, Chody tweeted that the in-custody death had occurred, but provided no other details.
Because the death happened in Travis County, Moore's office is handling the investigation. The Austin Police Department is also involved, because the traffic stop ended inside the city and officers were present at the scene.
Moore said the initial investigation shows Ambler informed deputies of his congenital heart defect, and was not resisting arrest - yet, Moore notes, he was tased a total of four times. "What should have been a routine traffic stop, ended with Javier’s death," Moore said on Twitter.
Moore said crews from the television series "Live PD" were shadowing the WCSO deputies during the pursuit and incident, although it was never broadcast. Efforts to obtain the footage have been unsuccessful, and Moore said the Sheriff's Office is fighting efforts to release it.
"We're taking this case seriously and working to seek justice for Javier & his family," Moore said.
In a statement released Tuesday morning, Chody's office aimed to "correct misleading statements" made by Moore. The statement says "the Travis County D.A. has not contacted us for any reason related to this investigation. Any attempt to say we have slowed or otherwise impeded the investigation is absolutely false."
The statement goes on to say the department "participated fully in the investigation launched by the Austin Police Department, the results of which have been forwarded to the Travis County D.A."
Chody ended his statement echoing Moore's request for footage from "Live PD", saying "I join the Travis County D.A. in requesting that LIVE PD make any existing footage available for review by Travis County prosecutors."
Representatives for A&E, the network that airs "Live PD", issued a statement Tuesday afternoon. "Contrary to many incorrect reports, neither A&E nor the producers of Live PD were asked for the footage or an interview by investigators from law enforcement or the District Attorney's office," the statement reads.