Lawyers press for body cam video after Harris Co. jailers charged in beating that left man in coma
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- A man who says he was nearly beaten to death at the Harris County Jail two years ago is pleading for justice.
On Thursday, Eyewitness News heard from Adael Gonzalez Garcia for the first time since a grand jury indicted three Harris County jailers in his injury.
According to the Harris County Sheriff's Office, the 48-year-old was arrested the night before Thanksgiving in 2022 on an outstanding DWI charge in Walker County.
The next night, the sheriff's office reported he fell from his top bunk in his cell and suffered facial injuries.
On Nov. 25, the sheriff's office said he got into a fight with a detention officer outside the medical clinic and allegedly fell to the ground and hit his head.
"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," attorney Randall Kallinen said.
Jimmy Poole, John Ziesemer, and Ezihuo Osiminibeke, who are guards at the Harris County Jail, have been charged in this case.
The three men were relieved of duty on May 4 and May 6 and are no longer working for the county jail, according to HCSO.
"The question really is: What is someone supposed to do when they are assigned to the jail, which is severely understaffed and an extremely dangerous place to work, when they are at work, and someone sucker punches them or starts to attack them from behind? What is the jailer or my sergeant supposed to do? The video absolutely clears my client," Justin Keiter, an attorney respresenting Ziesemer, said. "This is politics over prosecution, and it's about prosecuting the police."
Keiter said he's seen surveillance video that clears Sgt. Ziesemer.
Garcia's attorney said the sheriff's office has refused to turn over any video to him.
According to the sheriff's office, the incident is still under investigation.
"My head hurts. I get a little dizzy. I don't leave the house a lot. Right now, I feel a little dizzy," Gonzalez Garcia said in Spanish. "I just remember being hit. I don't remember much. I was in a coma. My lawyer is asking for the cameras because they are saying I fell off the bed, but that's not true."
An attorney for Poole had no comment on the case.
RELATED: 3 Harris Co. jail guards charged 2 years after inmate allegedly beaten into coma, lawyer says
