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The Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release Deputy Conner Martin was using an approved screening technique to detain her after responding to a 911 call that a young woman was suicidal and was walking in traffic in an attempt to get hit by a car.
In a recording of a 911 call released by Kaufman County, a caller tells a dispatcher that a young woman is walking in the middle of the street and when the caller had to swerve to miss her, the woman has said she wanted to be crushed and wanted someone to end her life.
“Three people must have stepped aside already, including me,” the caller said on the recording.
The camera on Martin’s body shows him arriving at the scene and asking a young woman what is wrong and why she is crying.
The woman, who her family would later identify as Nekia Trigg, 18, was crying but said she was fine and was just coming home.
She denied walking in front of cars.
In the body camera footage, Martin explained that he couldn’t let her go on her own.
“I don’t want you to hurt me,” Trigg said.
Martin, holding Trigg’s arm, replied, “I’m not going to hurt you, but if you keep walking away, I have to handcuff you.”
Trigg can be heard saying, “You are hurting me”, before the camera falls to the ground.
According to the sheriff’s office, the camera continued to record, but it fell under Trigg and Martin as they collapsed.
Trigg’s sister, Jads Levels, 19, and her friend, Jermany Sims, 20, witnessed part of the incident. They told CNN they learned of the police encounter after a phone call from Trigg on Tuesday night.
“She’s screaming and crying,” Levels told CNN over the phone, saying she remembered Trigg saying, “The police got me, the police got me, please come help me. “
Levels said her mother, Antanique Ray, then arrived home after work. They found Trigg’s location – just a quarter above – and jumped in the car, Levels said. She said they were able to figure out the location because Trigg had shared it with a friend.
Upon arrival, Levels and Sims said they heard Trigg scream and saw a Kaufman County Sheriff’s Deputy sitting on top of her, holding her hands above her head.
This is when Sims began filming the incident.
Video shows the family tried to calm Trigg down, telling him to “just breathe” and holding his hands. They also beg the deputy to leave Trigg. Shortly after, another Kaufman County Sheriff’s Deputy is seen and Trigg is rolled onto his stomach and handcuffed.
As the MPs push Trigg away, his mother is seen walking up to them.
She is heard in the video asking officers if they could loosen Trigg’s handcuffs. Martin can be heard telling him to come home, a fight ensues and Ray is arrested.
The sheriff’s office says Ray punched Martin, but it’s not clear from family video or from his body-worn camera.
Ray was arrested for interfering with public office and assaulting an official, according to the sheriff’s office.
CNN has contacted the Kaufman County Criminal District Attorney’s Office to find out what charges they are pursuing, if any.
The Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office said Trigg was taken to a mental health facility for assessment. The family tell CNN that Trigg was taken to Terrell State Hospital.
Ray released himself from detention but has yet to appear for the first time and Trigg has been released from the mental health facility, according to family attorney Kim T. Cole.
Cole says Trigg underwent an assessment at the facility and that she was “quickly released because they found no reason to keep her.”
Asked about the recording of the 911 call, Cole said if that was Trigg’s state of mind, the officer only made matters worse.
“The physical injuries from a car accident will heal eventually, however, the psychological damage this MP caused will be with Nekia for the rest of his life,” Cole said.
Cole says Trigg wasn’t suicidal.
“She was just trying to get home. She didn’t care about the traffic. She wanted to come home,” Cole said.
Martin has been placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation, in accordance with Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office policy, according to the press release.
CNN could not reach Martin for comment and the sheriff’s office said no statement from him was available.
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