TARRANT COUNTY (WBAP/KLIF News ) – The release of an amended autopsy report for a man who died in Tarrant County Jail in 2019 is raising more questions.
In a report released on Tuesday, the Tarrant County Medical Examiner ruled Robert Miller’s cause of death as a sickle cell crisis and changed the manner of death from natural to undetermined.
“There’s no explanation for why the original medical examiner is now changing the finding of the cause of death and then doesn’t explain why that change is being made in the body of the report,” said attorney David Henderson, whose firm represents Miller’s widow Shanelle Jenkins in a wrongful death lawsuit against the county.
Tarrant County also released correspondence with the Mayo Clinic. Officials asked the clinic to test Miller’s blood samples for sickle cell disease.
Henderson said he takes issue with the county’s assertion that Miller died of a sickle cell crisis. He said Miller didn’t have sickle cell disease and was a only a carrier.
“When the county was challenged with this information, they said ‘oh, well we touched base with the Mayo Clinic and the Mayor Clinic said he had sickle cell. Then they produced the documents from the Mayo Clinic…the Mayo Clinic never said that,” said Henderson.
According to the autopsy report, Miller was pepper sprayed three times and was then transferred to decontamination, where he was placed under cold water for 10 minutes per jail protocol.
The autopsy report also states Miller told medical staffers that he had difficulty breathing. It state’s he allegedly became agitated which “prevented further evaluation” and was taken back to his cell.
Also included in the report was Miller’s alleged in-custody behavior leading up to his death.
The report states that on July 31, 2019, arresting officers said Miller allegedly kicked the back of the vehicle with such force that the officer noted “the door no longer lined up with the body of the patrol vehicle.”
Jailer’s said that Miller was combative in the change out room although no video of that encounter is available, according to the report. It states that Miller allegedly “struggled with officers during which he lifted two officers on him off the ground.”
The report argues that although rare, overexertion can lead to death with someone with a sickle cell trait.
“The pathogenesis of exertion-related deaths associated with the sickle cell trait is not well understood and is a subject of ongoing research” the report states.
Henderson said the report and what he called the county’s continued lack of transparency troubling.
“We don’t have all the materials that they appear to be relying on and so yes, there’s a gap there. There are gaps throughout the report and throughout the investigation. It appears that extends to third-party they’ve hired to conduct independent examination,” he said.
Jenkins has been public about her battle to find answers and accountability for what happened to her husband.
Henderson said his client only wants justice for Robert.
“More than anything else she wants the truth about what happened to her husband and she wants to know that this isn’t going to happen to other people,” he said.
WBAP reached out to the Tarrant County Jail media office for comment on questions about the latest autopsy report.
County Administrator G.K. Maenius issued a statement along with the documents.
“While there has been a public demand for the release of these documents, Tarrant County is a party in an ongoing lawsuit concerning Mr. Miller’s death. The County has worked on striking a balance between the public’s desire for information and the needs of the continuing litigation.”
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