Family of Texas man who died after altercation with prison guards calls for federal investigation

The family of a Texas man who died after an altercation with prison guards – one of whom pressed his knee on his back – called Tuesday for a federal investigation into practices at the prison.

Anthony Johnson Jr., 31, a former Marine, died April 21 after the altercation, which authorities said began when Johnson resisted orders from prison guards during a search for contraband. The Tarrant County coroner last week ruled the death a homicide by asphyxia, or asphyxiation.

After a two- to three-minute struggle with staff at the Tarrant County Jail in Fort Worth, Johnson was wrestled to the ground, Sheriff Bill Waybourn said, and jailer Rafael Moreno pressed his knee into Johnson’s back for about 90 seconds while he was handcuffed. Waybourn said Johnson was also sprayed with pepper spray during the incident.

The family’s attorney, Daryl Washington, said at a press conference in Fort Worth on Tuesday that what makes the situation so difficult for the family is the fact that the death “was entirely preventable.”

“More than anything, this family wants to see change at the Tarrant County Jail because parents are not allowed to bury their own children,” Washington said.

Waybourn has said Moreno should not have been allowed to use his knee when Johnson was already handcuffed. Waybourn initially fired both Moreno and Lt. Joel Garcia, the supervisor on duty, but rehired them about a week later and placed them on paid administrative leave because the sheriff’s office said the firings did not follow official protocol.

“We have incompetent, untrained and inhumane people in prison,” Johnson’s father, Anthony Johnson Sr., said at the press conference.

Anthony Johnson Jr. was arrested two days before his death for allegedly threatening the driver of a car with a knife. His family told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he was suffering from a mental health crisis.

Randy Moore, a lawyer for Garcia, said in a text message to The Associated Press that Garcia’s role in the fight was limited and the use of force was necessary. Moreno’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a phone message Tuesday.

The Texas Rangers are investigating Johnson’s death. Congressman Marc Veasey, who represents the Greater Fort Worth area, and County Commissioner Alisa Simmons both called for a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the events at the prison.

The force used in Johnson’s death is intended to stop and overpower people without killing them, but it has come under increasing criticism following the death of George Floyd in 2020. Floyd died after a Minneapolis police officer held him facedown on the ground for nine minutes with a knee pressed into his neck. The incident sparked nationwide outrage.

According to an AP investigation published in March, more than 1,000 people died in a decade after police used physical force and weapons that were supposed to be safer than firearms.

In hundreds of deaths, police disregarded well-known guidelines for safely restraining people. Most violations involved holding people face down so their breathing could be restricted, as was the case with Johnson, or repeatedly stunning them with Tasers.