SAN ANTONIO — Governor Greg Abbott on Wednesday signed the Javier Ambler Act into law, banning reality TV shows from partnering with Texas law enforcement.
State Rep. James Talarico put the proposal forward after our sister station KVUE first revealed the details of Ambler's death following an encounter with Williamson County deputies in March of 2019. Deputies initiated a vehicle pursuit with Ambler after he failed to dim his headlights, and the chase eventually ended in north Austin.
Deputies then used stun guns on Ambler as he shouted that he had a heart condition and could not breathe. It occurred while crews from the now-canceled TV show "Live PD" recorded the incident.
Talarico and Sen. John Whitmire, who co-sponsored the act, said the partnerships cause officers to perform for the cameras.
“Policing is not entertainment,” Talarico told KVUE. “I’m proud that Democrats and Republicans came together to pass this bill to protect our citizens and restore integrity in law enforcement.”
The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office was involved in a controversial chase of its own a few months after the Williamson County incident, this one involving crews from “Cops.” In October of 2019, the crew was riding with deputies as they chased a suspect who refused to pull over for traffic violations. Deputies continued to chase the suspect even as the pursuit hit opposite-way traffic.
“We’re looking at this to make sure that everything was complied with policy wise, but, preliminarily, it appears that our officers did a great job,” Sheriff Javier Salazar told media in 2019, after the incident.
During the chase, Yesenia Orozco who was heading home from work, was hit. The suspect rammed into her car and continued driving the wrong way on the freeway; she suffered multiple injuries.
The pursuit ended after the driver crashed into a guardrail.
Another person became a victim of the incident. SAPD Officer Ralph Delgado Jr. was setting up road flares to divert traffic and was hit by another vehicle. The officer’s leg was pinned between the car and guardrail, leading to SAPD Chief William McManus telling local news media about how frustrated he was with how things played out.
“Am I angry about it? Yes I am. I’m angry about it," McManus said at the time. "An officer may lose his career over this."
The police chief said he believed the lure of the limelight influenced BCSO in the chase.
“Let me very direct in my answer: The answer is yes, I do,” McManus said at the time. “The rule of thumb is: Is it worth the risk? Putting the public in the danger, putting the officers in danger who are involved in the pursuit?”
KENS 5 reached out to SAPD and BCSO for comment after Abbott signed the legislation into law, but we have not heard back.