Inmate dies in Galveston County jail after taser use, family demanding answers
GALVESTON, Texas - Another inmate death in the Galveston County Jail has sparked outrage among community activists. 39-year-old Saul Vargas was found dead in his cell after being tased by deputies. Now, his family is demanding answers.
"I need him back. Why did it have to end like this?" said Candelaria Palazios, Vargas's wife.
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After spending eight days in the Galveston County Jail, Vargas was found unresponsive in his cell. Vargas was behind bars for evading arrest and burglary of motor vehicles.
According to Galveston County Sheriff, the inmate's behavior caused deputies to move him into another cell. The inmate was restrained with force by using a taser. He was found unresponsive 30 minutes later. CPR was administered but he later died.
Vargas's family believes that he died under suspicious circumstances.
"He was a good guy. He was a good father. He was a good grandpa. He didn’t deserve this," said Palazios.
"They went in to restrain him and teach him a lesson about irritating them and upsetting them, continuously requesting to go to the hospital. The restraint measures were used and tasers were used, and he came up dead," said Quanell X, a community activist.
Vargas is the fourth inmate to die in the Galveston County Jail this year. One man died from kidney failure, another person died following an altercation with deputies, and another person died by suicide.
"This jail is too small to have so many people dying inside of it when cops decide to use restraint measures," said Quanell X.
Vargas’s wife, mother, and son are now calling on officials to release the video of the incident so they can see exactly what happened.
"I just beat cancer, and he was helping me get through it, and they took him from me and my kids," said Palazios.
The Galveston County Sheriff's Office said the incident has been turned over to the Texas Rangers and the Galveston County District Attorney’s Office. Community leaders are asking for the FBI and the Department of Justice to get involved in the case.