A Denver deputy making routine checks discovered a 51-year-old inmate who was dead in his jail cell this morning, officials say.
The name of the inmate is not being released pending notification of family members, said Capt. Frank Gale, jail spokesman.
“It looks like it’s something medical,” Gale said. “It did not involve the use of force.”
The jailer was making rounds at about 7 a.m. this morning when he saw the man lying on his bunk bed.
Paramedics were called to the Van Cise-Simonet Detention Center at 490 W. Colfax Ave., but they could not resuscitate the inmate, who was 51 years old, Gale said.
He said there was no sign of any struggle in the two-man cell on the second floor of the jail.
“There was no indication that he harmed himself or someone else did,” he said.
The man was arrested Wednesday for failure to appear on an arrest warrant and for a separate parole violation, Gale said.
The Denver Coroner’s Office will perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death and the police department will investigate the death, he said.
Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206 or kmitchell@denverpost.com
