In-custody deaths at Santa Rita, West County jails

DUBLIN, Calif. - Two men have died in custody at Santa Rita Jail in Alameda County and the West County Detention Facility in Richmond, according to officials.

On Monday, the Alameda County Sheriff reported the Aug. 24 death of 30-year-old Abrion William McElmore, who was homeless and lived in San Lorenzo, Hayward, and Castro Valley. 

The sheriff's press release did not state how McElmore died, only that he was found "unresponsive" in his cell and never regained consciousness. 

McElmore had been at Santa Rita Jail since September 2022 on multiple felonies, including forcible rape, assault, burglary, trespassing, and drug charges, the sheriff said. 

He is the second person to die in 2024 at Santa Rita Jail and the 70th since 2014, according to a KTVU analysis of in-custody deaths. 

Meanwhile, the East Bay Times reported that an incarcerated man died Monday afternoon at the West County Detention Facility.

Deputies found the man unresponsive just before 2 p.m., according to the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office. He was housed alone.

An investigation is underway, but the sheriff’s office said the death did not appear suspicious.

On Aug. 22, the San Ramon Police Department booked the man into the Martinez Detention Facility on multiple felony theft charges, according to the sheriff’s office.