Chastity Bonner’s death in Tarrant jail, nearly 1 year later: ‘We deserve answers’
A Tarrant County commissioner on Tuesday called for transparency in the case of Chastity Bonner, who died nearly one year ago in jail custody.
“Almost a year, this family has no answers,” said Alisa Simmons, who represents Precinct 2, during a Commissioners Court meeting. “I have no answers. We deserve answers.”
Chasity Bonner died in the county jail on May 27, 2024. The medical examiner ruled her death the natural result of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
But the family of the 35-year-old question that cause of death, saying she had no history of heart problems and accusing the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office of withholding information in her case to run out the statute of limitations on wrongful death lawsuits.
The Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Simmons cited a Star-Telegram investigation published in April that found the video the Sheriff’s Office sent to the Texas Commission on Jail Standards lacked three minutes of footage immediately preceding the medical event that resulted in Bonner’s death.
The jail commission is the state agency that reviews custody death investigations and monitors jail conditions to ensure that they adhere to minimum standards.
Brandon Wood, the commission’s executive director, has requested the Sheriff’s Office submit the missing footage and a report on the procedures that led to its omission.
Wood told the Star-Telegram on May 15 that the Sheriff’s Office is “formulating a formal response that will be submitted.” He did not immediately respond to an email asking for an update on Tuesday.
The Sheriff’s Office and District Attorney’s Office have withheld records in the case because they say the death remains under investigation.
“Where are the results of that investigation?” Simmons said Tuesday.
The District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“No family should be forced to wait this long to get answers on how their loved one entered the jail on May 16, 2024, and just 11 days later on, May 27, 2024, left in a body bag,” Simmons said.
After Simmons spoke, County Judge Tim O’Hare told of a recent trip he took to Washington, D.C., where he met with federal lawmakers from Texas and attended an event hosted by the National Association of Police Organizations.
At the event, the association honored Todd Tipton, a Tarrant County sheriff’s deputy who was shot in the line of duty in August 2024, and other deputies who pulled him to safety.
“It was wonderful being in a room full of heroes that keep us safe, and it was nice to see our Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office recognized for the good work they do to keep us safe,” O’Hare said.
Chastity Bonner’s autopsy report
Bonner’s family made a public records request for her autopsy report last year. The District Attorney’s Office asked the family to withdraw the request in September 2024 because of an “ongoing criminal investigation.”
A Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said last fall that the investigation would be closed once the medical examiner provided deputies with the autopsy report. But emails obtained by the Star-Telegram showed that no request for the report had been made at the time.
The state jail commission provided the Star-Telegram the autopsy report in March, eight months after her death. It showed that the medical examiner who performed the autopsy noted that a woman of Bonner’s age dying of heart disease is rare and could be due to a hereditary disorder. The examiner recommended her immediate family see their doctors about it.
For several weeks this spring, the Star-Telegram sought video footage from inside the jail. The jail commission initially said it had never received video evidence from the Sheriff’s Office, then said it had the video but was unable to upload it to a file sharing website.
The jail commission subsequently provided the footage, after which a Star-Telegram review determined that it lacked the three minutes prior to the emergency medical event that resulted in Bonner’s death.
This story was originally published May 20, 2025 at 1:44 PM.
