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Deputies accused in death of Javier Ambler attended start of pretrial hearing Tuesday

In 2020, Camden and Johnson were indicted on manslaughter charges in connection with Javier Ambler's death in 2019.

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas — Editor's note: An earlier version of this story stated Ambler was pulled over but he actually crashed his car. 

Two former Williamson County deputies attended the start of a pretrial hearing on Tuesday. Zach Camden and J.J. Johnson are facing manslaughter charges in connection with the death of Javier Ambler.

More than 300 potential jurors have been called to the case based on its publicity and if the deputies are convicted, they could face up to 20 years in prison.

In 2019, the deputies began chasing 40-year-old Ambler after he allegedly failed to dim his headlights when driving into oncoming traffic. After Ambler apparently refused to pull over, a pursuit that lasted 22 minutes and ended when Ambler’s Honda Pilot crashed north of Downtown Austin.

Camden and Johnson then proceeded to use Tasers on Ambler repeatedly.

Body camera footage of the incident, obtained by the KVUE Defenders and the Austin American-Statesman in 2020, showed Ambler screaming that he couldn't breathe and that he had congestive heart failure. He died soon after.

In 2020, Camden and Johnson were indicted on manslaughter charges. Both deny any criminal wrongdoing in Ambler's death.

'Live PD' footage 

The night of the encounter between the deputies and Ambler, the TV series "Live PD" was being filmed in Williamson County. Crews from the show were filming Johnson and Camden on patrol.

"Just because of what they think was fun or some kind of fame, you know, they continued doing what they were doing," Javier Ambler's mother, Maritza Ambler, told KVUE in May 2022.

In the months following the incident, former Williamson County Sheriff Robert Chody and Assistant County Attorney Jason Nassour were indicted on charges of evidence tampering for what officials allege was their role in destroying the “Live PD” footage – a charge they deny.

"Live PD" was canceled in 2020. The company behind it now produces a similar show called "On Patrol: Live."

RELATED: 'I keep a candle lit.' Javier Ambler's family focusing on justice years after his death

In December 2021, Williamson County settled a lawsuit from the Ambler family for $5 million – the highest it has ever paid to end a civil case.

State lawmakers also created a new law to ban reality TV shows from partnering with Texas law enforcement.

RELATED: Gov. Abbott signs Javier Ambler Act, banning reality TV shows from partnering with law enforcement

What's next?

After the pretrial hearing, jury selection began on Tuesday. Opening statements are set to begin on Monday, Feb. 26.

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