HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) — Charges were filed in a case involving a Harris County Jail inmate who was hospitalized with severe injuries two years ago.
On Thursday, a civil rights attorney told ABC13 that three Harris County Jail guards were charged in Adael Gonzalez Garcia’s brutal beating.
This happened in November 2022 when Gonzalez Garcia was so severely injured he ended up in a coma for a month.
“We are not saying this has to be a five-star hotel at the Harris County Jail,” Randall Kallinen, a civil rights attorney representing Gonzalez Garcia, said.
Kallinen said no one is expecting the royal treatment, but those taken into custody shouldn’t fear injury or death.
Gonzalez Garcia still suffers from regular seizures, according to Kallinen.
“A big chunk of his skull was broken into so many pieces they couldn’t even let it heal. They had to take it out, and then eight months later, they replaced it with a big piece of plastic,” Kallinen said.
According to the sheriff’s office, Gonazlez Garcia was arrested the night before Thanksgiving on an outstanding DWI charge out of Walker County. The charge has since been dropped.
The next night, the sheriff’s office reported he fell from the top bunk bed in his cell block and suffered facial injuries.
SEE MORE: Family of Harris County Jail inmate hospitalized doesn’t believe officers’ story after incident
Then, on Nov. 25, 2022, the sheriff’s office said he got into a fight with a detention officer outside the medical clinic, fell to the ground, and hit his head.
Everything reported seemed to point to Gonzalez Garcia as being at fault.
“They have given no narrative,” Kallinen said.
No video of what happened has been released to the family or the public.
However, a grand jury decided to indict Jimmy Poole, Ezihou Osiminbeke, and John Ziesmer for their part in the assault.
According to Kallinen, they are all Harris County Jail guards, but the sheriff’s office has yet to confirm that.
“Usually, it’s been historically that hardly any charges come out of the Harris County Jail for assaults on inmates by guards, but this instance, we don’t just have one, but we have three,” Kallinen said.
Kallinen added that Gonzalez Garcia and his family will speak publicly about the charges at a news conference on Friday.
While it’s a step towards justice, Kallinen said his client was sentenced to a life of pain.
“He hasn’t been cleared for work, and of course, this has caused him really great psychological harm for almost being beaten to death,” Kallinen said.
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