This past Sunday, Lois Wilkins talked to her daughter Ebony Joy Wilkins about Sandra Bland’s death. Her 38-year-old daughter commented that she could have been in Bland's shoes and that if she ever died in police custody, her mom shouldn't believe it was suicide. The next day, Wilkins launched a MoveOn petition calling for an "immediate and independent federal investigation" into Bland's death.
Bland, 28, was pulled over on July 10 in Waller County, Texas, for failure to signal. After allegedly assaulting the officer, she was arrested and taken to jail. Three days later, she was found dead in her cell. Investigators have said Bland’s autopsy findings are consistent with suicide.
But many people, including Wilkins and Bland's family, remain suspicious of the Waller County Sheriff's Office and concerned about the pattern of police brutality in America. Despite the autopsy's findings, Wilkins said she believes the officer mishandled Bland's traffic stop and should be held accountable.
“As her community, [we] should be able to know what actually happened,” Lois Wilkins, 61, told The Huffington Post. "What are the facts? I just don’t believe that the local police are actually reflecting that. They’re taking too long."
Since its launch on Monday, her MoveOn petition had amassed more than 300,000 signatures as of Friday afternoon -- and was about 16,000 shy of its stated goal of 325,000.
Heres another view of the arrest.