Darren Boykin
Not found on the Texas Attorney General’s published list of deaths in custody.
Darren Boykin was 23 when he died in August 2019. According to the lawsuit, he repeatedly said he could not breathe and felt faint while officers were driving him in a patrol car toward the Bowie County jail in Texarkana, Texas. The lawsuit says he was unresponsive when officers pulled him from the car in the basement of the Bi-State building. His mother, Keisha Boykin, and his estate sued three Texarkana, Texas officers in federal court, saying they were deliberately indifferent to a medical crisis. A police custodial death report submitted to the Texas Attorney General attributes his death to complications of sickle cell trait.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of illness (disputed; neglect alleged). The Texarkana College police custodial death report attributes his death to complications of sickle cell trait, while his mother and estate's federal lawsuit says three officers were deliberately indifferent to his medical crisis as he repeatedly said he could not breathe and felt faint.
Reported by: Texarkana College police custodial death report submitted to the Texas Attorney General (the agency that held him); his mother and estate's federal lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His mother and estate sued three Texarkana, Texas officers in federal court, alleging they were deliberately indifferent to a medical crisis during his ride toward the Bowie County jail.