Video shows Bland complaining that she'd been abused by the officers arresting her, those who know her don't believe she committed suicide, and now activist-journalist Shaun King of Daily Kos has found that sheriff Smith was fired from a previous job as police chief in 2008 after several allegations that he and members of his department had engaged in racially biased behavior and police brutality.
Details are relatively sparse, but pieces by the Houston Chronicle and an area TV reporter indicate that Smith was fired by the Hempstead City Council after several allegations of police misconduct, not all of which involved racial issues.
