The sheriff's office reported that one detainee died in custody at the central county jail.
According to the sheriff, "while the incarcerated man was awaiting transport to the hospital, he went into medical distress. Agents administered CPR until paramedics arrived and transported the incarcerated man by ambulance to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead."
The sheriff's Homicide Unit is investigating the case. The autopsy is scheduled for this Tuesday. The person's identity who died will only be reported after the sheriff informs his relatives.
The sheriff notified the Citizens Law Enforcement Review Board (CLERB) of this death and responded to the San Diego Central Jail.
San Diego County is at the center of a controversy over an audit that found "excessive deaths in custody".
According to an audit, San Diego County had 24 more jail deaths than projected between 2010 and 2020, the highest percentage among California's 12 most populous counties.
In mid-March, Assemblywoman Akilah Weber introduced a bill, Assembly Bill 2343, known as the Saving Lives in Custody Act, to ensure people in custody are treated with dignity.
"What was especially disturbing to me," Weber said, "is that many deaths are preventable. California must set the minimum standards for prison systems to follow. It is time to update them to ensure we are preventing loss of life due to inadequate medical care for people in custody."
Also, in March, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved all of the recommendations made in the state audit that found San Diego as counties with "excessive deaths in custody".
