Timpa autopsy photos may give clues about Floyd’s death

DALLAS – On the birthday of their dead son and father, the family of Tony Timpa mourned for their lost loved one and expressed support for George Floyd and other victims of excessive force.
“Tony would have been thirty-six today,” said his mother, Vicki Timpa. “He’s missed his past four birthdays. No mother should ever have to bury a child. I miss my sweet boy.”

The deceased logistics broker was killed on August 10, 2016 at the hands of Dallas Police officers. One officer drove his knee into Timpa’s back for more than 14 minutes, a near eternity according to police experts and training manuals. Police bodycams captured the killing and officers mocking Timpa as he died. Like Floyd, Timpa died from asphyxia while handcuffed and restrained by police officers.
At the time of his killing, Timpa handcuffed and zip-tied, but was not armed nor threatening officers, according to the DPD’s Custodial Death Report. The Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office determined that Timpa’s death was a “HOMICIDE” resulting from the physiological stress of restraint and the toxic effects of cocaine. An independent medical examiner concluded that compression from the restraint killed Tony.

“The entire Timpa family has seen many birthdays and holidays come and go without relief from Tony’s inexcusable smothering,” said attorney Geoff Henley. “It’s been a fight from the getgo. It took months of litigation just for us to get the bodycam footage. Then, there was the up-down roller coaster of the aborted criminal prosecution.”

At present, the lawyers for the Timpas and the officers await a ruling from a federal judge that will determine whether the case may proceed to trial, but Henley said the case is far from over and that George Floyds’ family could meet similar delays.

“The Timpas and our firm feel for the Floyds,” Henley said. “Excessive force litigation is typically nasty, brutish and long. The City’s lawyers tell us that if the family wins, the officers will immediately appeal the ruling,” in an uncommon procedure called an “interlocutory appeal” that is unique to police brutality cases, Henley said. “No one’s done fighting. We certainly aren’t.”

Have a Personal Injury matter? Contact Henley & Henley Today.