September 18, 2024 – Santa Maria, CA – Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office officials report that a Santa Maria man, who was in custody prior to his release, passed away on September 17, 2024, while hospitalized. On Thursday, August 29, 2024, at approximately 12:52 p.m., a 40-year-old male was booked by Santa Maria Police at the Northern Branch Jail on a felony warrant for violation of probation and assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury. The subject was medically screened by Wellpath staff with no identified emergency medical conditions before being processed for intake and subsequently housed in the B Unit of the NBJ facility.

At approximately 7:35 p.m. that evening, a custody deputy observed the inmate to have lost consciousness while standing up and then fell to the ground.  Additional custody staff along with WellPath medical personnel immediately responded to the location and rendered aid to the subject, who temporarily regained consciousness. American Medical Response was summoned and transported the subject to Marian Hospital for treatment. It is believed that the subject’s condition did not improve while hospitalized and he underwent emergency surgery within hours of being admitted. The subject did not regain consciousness while hospitalized and remained in Sheriff’s custody until Friday, September 13, 2024, when he was court ordered to be released.

Tuesday, September 17, 2024, at approximately 5:16 a.m., the subject was pronounced dead by staff at Marian Hospital. Detectives from the Sheriff’s Office are conducting multiple investigations into this death, including both a Coroner’s investigation and criminal investigation. Additional information will be released once family members have been notified of the death and upon the conclusion of the investigation.

Source: Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office