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| Inmate death ruled accidental |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 09/22/2003 |
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An inmate who collapsed and died at the El Paso County jail in Colorado had swallowed a bag of cocaine that ruptured in his stomach and killed him, the El Paso County coroner said. The death Wednesday of Gregorio Valdovino Palomera, 24, was ruled accidental, sheriff's Lt. Rodney Gehrett said Thursday. Palomera was the fifth inmate to die in the jail this year. During the autopsy, the coroner found a bag containing 14 grams of cocaine in Palomera's stomach. Investigators were trying to determine when Palomera acquired the drugs. Palomera was booked into the jail Sept. 8 for investigation of felony traffic offenses, including vehicular eluding and habitual traffic offender. Jail officials strip search suspects when they arrive at the jail but do not search body cavities unless there is a court order, Gehrett said. Seventeen other deaths at the jail since 1991 have been ruled suicides or because of natural causes, Gehrett said. Information on deaths before 1991 was not readily available Thursday. |
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