Black woman dies in U.S- Texas police jail

The death of a black woman in a Texas jail three days after a traffic stop took on new urgency Tuesday after authorities released a dash-cam recording of her arrest. 

The family of Sandra Bland, 28, have challenged the suicide diagnosis given by officials, and Waller County District Attorney Elton Mathis on Monday said he was opening a murder investigation, reports dpa.

Bland was found dead in her cell on July 13, where Police Captain Brian Cantrell said she had hanged herself with a plastic garbage bag.

Bland's family insisted she had travelled to Texas to start a new job at Prairie View A&M University, where she graduated in 2009. She was upbeat and anything but suicidal, they said. 

Bland's death raises anew the spotlight on US police behaviour and brutality against black suspects, nearly a year after the beginning of a series of deaths set the country into the throes of protests and riots. 

A major complaint is how police often stop black drivers for minor traffic violations that end in injury and death.

In the recording from July 10 taken from the camera mounted on the dashboard of the police car in Hempstead, Texas, Bland is pulled over for failing to signal she was changing lanes. 

Texas Ranger Brian Encinia takes Bland's driver's license back to his cruiser, walks back to her car, leans into her window and says: "OK, Mam, are you OK?" he says. 

"This is your job," Bland says. 

"You seem irritated," Encinia says.

 "I am a little irritated but that doesn't stop you from giving me a ticket," Bland says.

 But when Encinia asks Bland to "please" put out her cigarette, she objects. 

"I'm in my car. Why do I have to put out my cigarette?" she asks, indignant. 

"Well, you can step out now," Encinia demands. She objects, and Encinia repeatedly demands she step out or he will yank her out.

 "Don't touch me. I'm not under arrest," Bland says.

 "Get out of the car," Encina shouts repeatedly. "I will light you up."

 The altercation escalates with curse words from Bland and shouts from Encinia. Finally, Encinia pulls Bland out of the car and knocks her on the ground, according to a video taken by a bystander who is chased away by police. 

"For a failure to signal! You feeling good about yourself, don't you. You are such a pussy," Bland shouts.

 She complains that her wrists are being broken, and that Encinia has his knee in her back.

 "This makes you feel real good, officer Encinia, for a traffic signal, knock me on the ground," she says.

While the footage is fuzzy at times, State Senator Royce West said Tuesday that he concluded she had been threatened with a taser after he reviewed the video, The Washington Post reported. 

Three days after the arrest, Bland was found dead in her jail cell. 

Footage from stationary jail cameras shows an officer walking back to check on her. He finds her dead. 

District Attorney Mathis said that Bland's family had made a "valid point" that she had a lot of things going on in her life that were good. 

"It's very much too early to make any kind of determination that this was a suicide or a murder because the investigations are not complete," he said. 

Encinia has been put on desk duty pending a full investigation, the Texas Department of Public Safety said. The department has also asked that the FBI assist in the investigation. 

Bland's death has sparked a Twitter storm. 

"#IfIDieInPoliceCustody there's a great possibility that I wasn't even breaking the law or resisiting. I was just black," one person tweets.

 Bland herself made use of social media. In one clip, she said she was holding "this telephone" that is "quite powerful." 

"If we wanna change, we can make it happen," she vows.

 In another one, she admits she is a bit depressed and experiencing some PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder.