Lucio Vasquez / Houston Public Media
A grand jury this week returned an indictment of criminally negligent homicide against a former Galveston County Jail officer in connection with an inmate’s death last year.
The Galveston County District Attorney’s Office presented evidence to a grand jury on Tuesday following the Texas Rangers’ investigation into the circumstances surrounding Saul Vargas’ death inside the jail last September. The jury returned the indictment of criminally negligent homicide against Skyler Ray Chapman, according to the DA’s office. Court documents were not immediately available online Wednesday.
Chapman’s employment with the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office was terminated in January.
“Our office will prosecute this case vigorously,” the Galveston County District Attorney’s Office said in a Wednesday news release. “We will seek the earliest possible trial date that fairness and due process will allow.”
The case went directly before a grand jury and a warrant will be issued for Chapman’s arrest, Brent Haynes, assistant district attorney, told Houston Public Media.
It wasn’t immediately clear Wednesday whether the county medical examiner’s office has determined Vargas’ cause of death. The office referred questions to the district attorney’s office, which declined to comment beyond the news release.
In a report filed with the Texas Attorney General’s Office, the sheriff’s office said deputies used force against Vargas. Just before 5 p.m. on Sept. 10, 2024, Vargas allegedly pushed his way past two deputies who opened his cell door to move a mattress inside.
The deputies immediately began to restrain him inside of a dayroom and moved him back inside of the cell, according to the report. The sheriff’s office alleges he continued to resist after the officers brought him back into the cell, where they removed his restraints. Twenty minutes later, jail staff entered the cell again and noticed Vargas was unresponsive.
He was transported to the University of Texas Medical Branch hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Great Job & the Team @ Houston Public Media Source link for sharing this story.
