In the late hours of a March night in 2014, the life of 22-year-old Victor White III, a Black male, came to a tragic and perplexing end in Iberia Parish, Louisiana. The events of that evening began when deputies responded to a report of a fight at a convenience store. Although not involved in the altercation, White was present and, following a search that revealed a small amount of marijuana and cocaine, he was arrested.
Handcuffed behind his back, he was placed in the rear of a patrol car to be transported to the sheriff's office.
What transpired next remains a point of intense controversy and sorrow. According to the Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office, upon arriving at the station, White became uncooperative and refused to exit the vehicle. It was then, they reported, that he produced a handgun and shot himself. The initial law enforcement narrative stated the wound was to his back, but the coroner's report later detailed that the bullet entered the right side of his chest and exited under his left arm. Despite the seemingly impossible feat of shooting oneself in the chest while handcuffed from behind, the official cause of death was ruled a suicide. This conclusion was met with immediate disbelief by his family and their legal representatives, who dubbed it the 'Houdini handcuff' suicide.
The investigation into Victor White III's death unfolded under a cloud of suspicion. Gunshot residue was reportedly found on White's hand, though it was noted he was left-handed, and the shot entered his right side. Louisiana State Police investigated and upheld the suicide ruling. Subsequently, the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI launched a federal investigation to determine if any civil rights violations had occurred. In 2015, federal authorities announced they would not be filing any criminal charges, stating there was insufficient evidence to disprove that the gunshot wound was self-inflicted.
In the absence of criminal charges, the family of Victor White III filed a federal lawsuit against the Iberia Parish Sheriff at the time, Louis Ackal, and a deputy. The lawsuit brought to light other allegations of misconduct within the sheriff's office, including claims of racial slurs and justifying the beatings of detainees. Before the case could go to trial, a settlement was reached in 2018, with the sheriff's office paying $325,000 to resolve the lawsuit. No one was ever arrested or charged in connection with the death of Victor White III, leaving his family with unanswered questions and a settled, but not fully resolved, case.
