Police Accused of Doing Nothing While Black Woman had Fatal Seizure

Howard County defendants plan to fight lawsuit
Officials in Howard County say in legal documents that they do not know if a woman in the shared county/city jail suffered a seizure. But they are going to fight the federal lawsuit that alleges they ignored calls for help for the late LaTeca Jordan, of Nashville, Ark., after officers allegedly accused her of "faking" a seizure. Howard County, the City of Nashville, Ark., and officers Clint Tedford and Ty Basiliere want the lawsuit thrown out. Jordan died in a Texarkana hospital on Aug. 18, 2002, after she lapsed into a coma. Her daughter, Teca Williams, filed the lawsuit last month. Williams alleges she watched as her mother was near death on the floor of the jail. She sued in federal district court in Texarkana, Ark., for alleged violations of civil rights. Jordan was African-American in a community that has for the past year been mired in racial tensions because of the deaths of African-Americans in police or sheriff's custody.  Officials do agree that tests show that Jordan did ingest cocaine, which her daughter says prompted the seizure. But officials in the South Arkansas county say they called for help in time. [more ]