An inmate with COVID-19 died of pneumonia, malnutrition and dehydration in 2022 but the incident has now prompted an investigation after the Medical Examiner's Office ruled his death a homicide.
Lonnie Newton Rupard was found unresponsive in his cell on March 17, 2022. Sheriff's deputies and medical staff performed lifesaving measures until Rupard was taken to a hospital, where he later died.
The San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office autopsy report showed Rupard's preliminary cause of death was from pneumonia, malnutrition and dehydration with a COVID-19 viral infection, pulmonary emphysema and duodenal ulcer as contributing factors.
The Medical Examiner's Office determined Rupard's death was a homicide, according to the sheriff's department.
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The Sheriff's Internal Affairs Unit is investigating the circumstances surrounding Rupard's death to determine if there were any violations of department policy or procedure, according to the department.
The Sheriff's Homicide Unit was also investigating the incident and will submit its findings to the District Attorney's Office for review. It will also provide the findings to the U.S. Attorney's Office for review by its Civil Rights Unit regarding any potential violations related to the death, according to the department.
In 2022, the SDSO reported 19 in-custody deaths and has reported two deaths so far in 2023, according to their transparency reports.
Last year, a nurse and a doctor at the Las Colinas Detention Facility in Santee were both charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of a 24-year-old inmate at an East County Jail.
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Earlier this year, criminal justice reform activists and family members of people who died in San Diego County Sheriff's Department custody gathered outside the department to call on Sheriff Kelly Martinez to meet with them and voice their concerns.
The family members are also advocating for the department to add more surveillance cameras around the jail facilities and to make that video available to investigators and family members when an in-custody death occurs. They also want the department to enact a policy preventing deputies and staff from being part of or affiliated with white supremacist and extremist groups.
No other information was available.
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