Defense, state clash on use of force expert’s credibility during in-custody death trial
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Without the jury present, the state and defense debated Friday over the qualifications of the state’s first expert witness. Roger Clark, a use of force expert, was set to weigh in on the actions of two former Williamson County Sheriff’s deputies the night Javier Ambler died in custody.
Ambler died after leading police on a 20-minute chase that ended in a crash on March 28, 2019. James Johnson and Zach Camden are accused of acting recklessly while trying to arrest Ambler by using a stun gun despite him telling the officer he had a heart condition.
Defense questions credibility of expert witness
Nearly two hours of debate took place before 299th District Court Judge Karen Sage allowed Clark to testify in front of the jury. She did rule, however, that Clark would not be permitted to talk about positional asphyxia or the deputies’ pursuit of Ambler.
Clark has decades of law enforcement experience, starting in 1965. He’s claimed to have testified as an expert witness more than 100 times in Texas, lectured at prominent universities like the University of Texas, and has been hired to consult in federal cases.
Once the jury was brought in, the state asked Clark if what he saw in dashcam and bodycam footage justified and reflected typical standards associated with police use of force.
Clark said no. He said, based on the footage, deputies acted excessively as Ambler was no longer a threat once incapacitated by Johnson’s taser and on the ground.
Upon cross-examination, the defense asked Clark when he was hired for this case, he answered that he was hired on February 6.
The defense then brought up that Clark was the second use of force expert the state enlisted for this case. Previously, another Texas-based expert was tapped, his report found the deputies acted appropriately in their use of force.
The defense also questioned Clark’s knowledge of WCSO’s tasing protocols, he replied he wasn’t aware of the office’s practices.
However, Clark said he was qualified to analyze the footage because both deputies would also have a responsibility to follow guidelines of Texas peace officers, standards he is familiar with.
Forensic consultant testifies
Dr. Michael Freeman was called to the stand Friday afternoon, he was the state’s second expert witness of the day. He works as a professor and researcher of forensic medicine.
Freeman disclosed to the state that he’d analyzed footage, medical, and autopsy records related to Ambler’s death.
He said Ambler’s autopsy and toxicology reports showed he had an enlarged, inflamed heart and heart disease, and had ibuprofen, marijuana, and “therapeutic” amount of opioids in his system at the time.
Freeman testified that Ambler’s health overall was very poor and was a contributing factor to his death, but said it would be nearly impossible to find out if the cause of death was his health or stress from the tasing and restraint.
Possible sanctions
Just minutes into the fifth day of court, the defense moved for the case to be thrown out with prejudice, citing information from Williamson County that surfaced mid-trial. The defense said the state had knowledge of the report and a responsibility to disclose it but failed to do so.
After a brief recess, Sage denied the motion but agreed the state should face some type of repercussions. She asked the defense to introduce ideas for sanctions on Monday.
A member of the prosecution addressed the court and said the report had been turned over but in evidence related to Robert Chody, who was the WCSO sheriff at the time of the incident. Chody is facing his own trial related to the Ambler case.
Moving forward, the status of the sanctions is unclear.
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