AUSTIN, Texas — A Texas grand jury has indicted 19 Austin police officers on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for their actions during 2020 protests over racial injustice that spread nationwide after the killing of George Floyd, according to people familiar with the matter.
Multiple people spoke to The Associated Press Thursday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case publicly.
It ranks among the most indictments on a single police department in the U.S. over tactics used by officers during the widespread protests.
According to The Associated Press, Travis County district attorney Joe Garza spoke to reporters Thursday about the grand jury investigation but provided no specifics.
"Our community is safer when our community trusts enforcement. When it believes law enforcement follows that law and protects the people who live here," Garza said. "There cannot be trust if there is no accountability when law enforcement breaks the law."
Word of the indictments came hours after Austin city leaders approved paying $10 million to two people injured by police in the protests.
According to ABC News, those two individuals were both injured by what's known as "less-lethal" ammunition during the protests. One man suffered a fractured skull; the other needed to have a titanium plate permanently inserted into his jaw.