Did Police Beat Man Half To Death For Riding Bike Without A Light?

It's news no one wants to hear; a family member is in the hospital on life support unable to speak and even worse there are few answers about how it all happened.

That's exactly what one Aransas Pass family says they are going through.

Martin Garcia Ortiz is in critical condition after an incident allegedly involving Aransas Pass police back on August 10th.

On August 10th, Ortiz's family says he was riding his bicycle home and just a few blocks away something happened to put him in critical condition.

Just before midnight, the family's attorneys say they believe police tried stopping Ortiz for not having a headlight on his bike. Then, the situation took a dramatic turn when one officers allegedly knocked Ortiz to the ground.

"Either with his vehicle or with his person pushed him over on his bicycle. He fell over to the street," said Stephen Carriganan, attorney for the family.

Attorneys say Ortiz was knocked from his bike along Cleveland Street. The allegations are only more shocking from there.

They say, they believe when Ortiz was already on the ground bleeding the officer got out and punched or kicked him causing even more injuries.

We contacted Aransas Pass police department for comment but our calls weren't returned.

It's not clear if the officers involved received disciplinary action, but it appears they're still on duty in the city.

Police are charging Ortiz with public intoxication and resisting arrest.

The family's attorneys report the police department has told them the dash-cam video from the police unit was- for some reason- unable to record the incident.

Attorneys also say the department hasn't given them a complete copy of the incident report.

"I can find very little justification. If what we believe is true; if they pushed or ran this guy of the road, whatever they did with their car or their persons. I'd be very surprised if there is any justification for that in a report," said Chris Gayle, an attorney for the family.

Now, the family and attorneys say they are faced with a lot of unanswered questions about exactly what went on that night, but they're hopeful they will find the truth.

"You will always get the answer. It may take a little bit of time. Right now, we're troubled by what we think the answer is. Maybe we're wrong, but I don't think we are," Gayle said.