No Black jurors selected for trial in Javier Ambler case, sources say

TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) -- Sources confirmed to KXAN on Wednesday that no Black jurors were selected to serve in the trial for two former Williamson County deputies in the death of Javier Ambler.

Sources said there is one alternate juror who is Black, and another potential juror who is also Black was excluded due to criminal history.

KXAN requested comment from Judge Karen Sage, however a coordinator for the 299th District Court said Wednesday that she could not provide comment nor confirm.

Ambler, a former postal worker, died during a law enforcement chase in March 2019 with former Williamson County Sheriff’s Office deputies James Johnson and Zachary Camden, which ended in north Austin. Johnson and Camden were being filmed by the reality show “Live PD,” which aired on A&E at the time, and the footage of the incident never aired on television and was destroyed.

Prosecutors claimed Johnson and Camden acted recklessly in restraining Ambler while using a stun gun, which occurred after authorities said Ambler said he could not breathe and had a health condition, according to indictments.

Jury selection for the trial began on Tuesday.

As KXAN reporter Mercedez Hernandez was in court for jury selection Tuesday, a Black woman — who was at the court as a potential juror — asked the state how jurors were selected for this trial. Sage explained that it was random with summons for jurors going out from the Travis County Clerk's Office.

Opening statements are slated to start Feb. 26.