News

Officials identify inmate who died in jail

By Bill Moss, Published: September 8, 2014

Henderson County Sheriff's Office officials say they suspect no foul play in the death of an inmate who was found unresponsive by jailers on Sunday afternoon and died 14 hours later at the hospital.

The Sheriff's Office identified the inmate as Brandon Chase Cox. He had been arrested by Fletcher police at the Econo-Lodge in Fletcher and charged with possession of schedule 2 drugs on Labor Day, said Sheriff's Capt. Jerry Rice.

Detention officers were conducting a routine security round when they found the inmate at 1:10 p.m. The officers and jail medical staff attempted to revive the inmate and called an ambulance. Emergency personnel transported Cox to Pardee Hospital for advanced care and life saving efforts but he died at 3:06 a.m. Monday, his 23rd birthday.

Cox had hung himself with a bedsheet, the Sheriff's Office said. Cox "was extremely impaired" on drugs when he was first jailed on Labor Day, said Chief Deputy Frank Stout, but once the drugs wore off "he had not given us any indication that he needed to be on watch."

An autopsy has been scheduled for Wednesday at Bowman Gray School of Medicine in Winston-Salem. The Sheriff's Office notified Henderson County District Attorney’s Office, North Carolina Jail Inspector’s Office and the SBI of the incident.

"You're required to notify the Jail Inspector's office anytime there's a death in a confinement facility," Rice said. "We will certainly give the results of the investigation to the district attorney. Right now it does not look like the SBI is coming to investigate given the fact that there's nothing suspicious surrounding the death. He was alone in the cell."

The Facebook page of Brandon's father, Tony, was filled with condolences and offers of prayers.