Former WilCo sheriff's deputies found not guilty of all charges in death of Javier Ambler while in custody

AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Two former Williamson County sheriff's deputies were found not guilty of manslaughter Thursday in the 2019 in-custody death of Javier Ambler.

A Travis County jury handed down the verdict on the ninth day of the trial, with the verdict clearing Zach Camden and J.J. Johnson read in court around 8:30 p.m. Thursday evening. In addition to manslaughter, jurors also considered charges of criminally negligent homicide and assault.

Ambler, who was 40 at the time, died on March 28, 2019, after leading Camden and Johnson on a 20-minute car chase. The deputies attempted to pull Ambler over for failing to dim his headlights; Ambler had several minor crashes during the chase, which finally came to a stop at St. John's and Bethune Avenue.

Camden and Johnson used their department-issued Tasers on Ambler three times; in body camera video recorded by Austin Police officer Michael Nissen, Ambler can be heard shouting at the deputies that he had a heart condition and could not breathe.

The entire incident was recorded by crews from the reality television series "Live PD"; the footage was destroyed before it could be used as evidence. Former Williamson County Sheriff Robert Chody and former WilCo general counsel Jason Nassour are each facing indictment on a felony evidence tampering charge in connection with the case.

“Our hearts continue to break for the family of Javier Ambler,” Travis County District Attorney José Garza said in a statement Thursday night. “We hoped that the outcome of this trial would bring justice and closure to the family. We are grateful to our community members who served on the jury for this case, respect their decision, and thank them for their service.”

This is the second time Garza's office has tried a law enforcement officer for an in-custody death since his election in 2020; last year, jurors deadlocked in the murder trial of Austin Police officer Christopher Taylor for the fatal shooting of Michael Ramos. Garza's office has said they will seek another trial in the Taylor case; Taylor also faces an additional murder charge for the separate shooting of Mauris DeSilva in 2019. One of the two cases is expected to be tried in September.