Accountability.
HOUSTON — Videos released in a federal civil rights case have brought renewed scrutiny to the Harris County Jail, with attorneys alleging that the recordings document excessive force, inadequate medical care and failures to conduct required inmate safety checks.
The footage was detailed in an August 25 report by KHOU 11 Investigates. The lawsuit, originally filed in 2023, represents 27 current and former inmates and relatives of people who died in custody, according to KHOU. Attorneys with Ben Crump Law fought for the release of the videos, alleging that their clients’ constitutional rights were violated.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment on the active litigation. In its response to KHOU, however, a spokesperson said the state in July “certified Harris County as being in compliance with all standards, including those related to safety, security, medical services, and overall jail operations.” The spokesperson added that the safety and well-being of inmates and public servants is a top priority.
Disputed force in Jacoby Pillow’s death
One of the cases involves Jacoby Pillow, who was held on a misdemeanor trespassing charge and was set to be released on a $100 bond in 2023 when he had an altercation with detention officers.
The Sheriff’s Office has maintained that Pillow assaulted a detention officer. His attorneys offer a different account, alleging that video shows officers punching him in the head and neck, placing their weight on his chest in a way that impeded his breathing, and slamming his head against the wall of the cell.
KHOU reported that the FBI is investigating Pillow’s death following a request from Sheriff Ed Gonzalez.
Videos involving people who survived
Other recordings concern detainees who survived their encounters with staff.
According to KHOU, one video shows inmate Ryan Twedt covering a jail camera. Minutes later, the footage shows detention officers punching Twedt in the head and taking him to the ground.
A recording involving former inmate Jeremy Garrison shows him being pushed headfirst into a door while his hands were cuffed behind his back, KHOU reported. Garrison previously told the station, following surgeries to his neck, that he told a detention officer he thought his neck had been broken and that the officer responded that he did not care. Garrison said he continues to live with pain from his injuries.
Detention officer Jesse Martinez was indicted on an assault charge, which was later dismissed after he surrendered his license, according to KHOU.
Observation rounds under scrutiny
The lawsuit also challenges how staff monitored people in their cells.
KHOU described one recording in which an officer walks past cell doors without looking inside, then scans a QR code used to document that the required round was completed. Attorneys allege that another recording shows a detention officer doing the same thing while walking past the cell of inmate William Barrett.
Records cited in the lawsuit indicate that about 40 minutes later, another officer found Barrett unresponsive on the cell floor. Video shows him being taken away on a stretcher; he was later pronounced dead, according to KHOU.
Texas requires face-to-face observation of jail inmates at least once every hour, with more frequent checks for high-risk inmates. The Texas Commission on Jail Standards has cited Harris County multiple times in recent years for failing to properly conduct observation rounds, KHOU reported.
Earlier investigation prompted policy changes
The lawsuit’s hundreds of exhibits include KHOU’s 2024 documentary, “STRUCK: Inside the Harris County Jail.” The station’s review of Sheriff’s Office use-of-force records found that detention officers struck inmates in the head under questionable circumstances more than 800 times over four years, with only a small number of officers disciplined for those strikes.
Gonzalez later revised the department’s use-of-force policy governing blows to the head, face and throat. “You brought some things to our attention that we could be doing better,” he told KHOU in January 2025.
Ben Crump Law declined to comment on the details of the case but said the firm is seeking full justice for its clients. “We hope that our efforts can lead to long-term reform in the Harris County Jail to prevent future injuries,” attorney Aaron Dekle of Ben Crump Law told KHOU.
TPN has not independently reviewed the recordings or the current court docket.