Medical examiner rules Wyandotte County inmate’s death a homicide, KBI says
The death of an inmate at the Wyandotte County Detention Center in July has recently been ruled a homicide by a medical examiner, state law enforcement officials said Friday.
The inmate died after complications of mechanical asphyxia, or when an object or physical force stops someone from breathing, according to a news release from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.
Other factors contributed to his death, including hypertensive cardiovascular disease, according to the KBI.
The inmate, identified by the KBI as Charles L. Adair, 50, received medical care around 8:30 p.m. July 5 in the detention center’s infirmary for a pre-existing wound on his leg.
According to a news release at the time, Adair was being transferred back to his cell when he allegedly began yelling and physically resisting officers. Multiple deputies responded to the disturbance and handcuffed Adair.
Deputies then transported him back to his cell, where he was placed on the lower bunk. They began attempting to remove the handcuffs, and Adair continued to resist, according to the release. Deputies gained control, removed the cuffs, and left the cell, the KBI said.
Minutes later, at 8:37 p.m., medical staff were called to evaluate Adair who was found unresponsive. Life-saving measures were initiated until EMS arrived and continued medical intervention.
Adair was pronounced dead at 9:19 p.m.
In a news release Friday, the KBI said it completed its investigation and presented findings to the Wyandotte County District Attorney’s Office for any applicable charges.
KBI investigates all in-custody deaths which occur in Kansas jails and prisons unless the inmate who died was being regularly attended by a physician or the death is ruled natural by an autopsy.
Investigators did not observe any obvious signs of physical injury on Adair resulting from the incident, a news release said in July.
Adair had been in the facility since he was arrested July 4 on misdemeanor warrants for failure to appear in court on multiple traffic violations.
Previous reporting by The Star’s Noelle Alviz-Gransee contributed.
