Inmate unresponsive in York County jail dies at Rock Hill hospital; SLED probe ongoing
South Carolina state police are investigating after an inmate found unresponsive at the York County jail Monday died at a hospital, officials said.
The inmate’s identity has not yet been released by the York County Coroner’s Office.
The male inmate had been in the jail less than a day when he was found around 8:15 p.m. in a booking area cell, said Trent Faris, spokesman for the York County Sheriff’s Office. Detention officers performed CPR before EMS arrived and took over medical care, Faris said.
The inmate died at Piedmont Medical Center in Rock Hill, Faris said.
The inmate had been in the jail since around 1 a.m. Monday, Faris said. All new inmates are screened for COVID-19 symptoms when booked and placed in a separate holding area before going into general population, Faris said. The inmate did not exhibit any COVID symptoms, Faris said.
The jail currently has around 350 inmates. County sheriffs under South Carolina law must run the county jail.
Sheriff Kevin Tolson notified the State Law Enforcement Division about the incident, because of sheriff’s office policy of seeking an independent agency to review any inmate deaths. SLED has begun an investigation but has not released any details.
“SLED has been asked to conduct an investigation into this incident, which is a common practice in these types of cases,” said Tommy Crosby, spokesman for SLED.
The inmate death is the first at the jail since March of 2020., officials said.
Check back for updates on this developing story.
