Yancy Family Demands Action
Arlington, Texas – The Family of Mason Andrew Yancy, who died while in custody at Tarrant County Jail, have taken steps in seeking justice in his death. Family Representative Darren Yancy, brother to Mason, describes the demands the family are seeking- “Today, our family has sent a demand to Governor Abbott to remove Texas Commission of Jail Standard Executive Director Brandon Wood for failing to follow the Sandra Bland Act of 2017. We have also sent a demand to the Tarrant County Commissioners Court to have a formal agenda topic and vote on the removal of Sherriff Bill Waybourn under Local Government Code Chapter 87.”
Recent investigative work from the Fort Worth Star Telegram revealed that Wood solicited requests from Texas Sherriff’s and Jail Administrators to provide the names of agencies to investigate themselves. TAMemo-InvestigationRequirementsforCustodialDeaths-1.pdf This is in contradiction to the Sandra Bland Act and opens allegations of investigations performed on in custody deaths since Wood’s directive.
Tarrant County Sherriff Bill Waybourn has had more than 70 in custody inmate deaths since 2017 – the year the Sandra Bland Act was passed. It is the Yancy Family’s position that the Texas Commission on Jail Standards is not functioning properly through Wood’s directive and has allowed Waybourn to remain compliant in the face of heinous deaths such as Mason Yancy, Chasity Congious, and Anthony Johnson, Jr. This despite such deaths running in contradiction to Chapter 511 rules for the Commission on Jail Standards. The Yancy Family believes the sheer number and manner of deaths call into question his competence to be Sherriff of Tarrant County. Local Government Code Chapter 87 is a legal process via trial to remove someone such as a County Sherriff under non-compliance, incompetence, or intoxication.