Autopsy set for diabetic who died in Franklin County custody

An autopsy is planned Wednesday for an Arkansas man who died in custody five days after his July 13 arrest in Pasco.

Raymond L. Hankins, 54, of Hot Springs, Ark. was booked into the Franklin County jail following a car accident near the Tri-Cities Airport Police say he refused to take a breath test and was uncooperative with officers.

The next day, he suffered a seizure and was taken to nearby Lourdes Medical Center. He died after four days on a ventilator.

His mother, Maxine Price, told the Herald that her son’s conduct may have been related to his health rather than intoxicants.

She said he used insulin to control diabetes, had had a stroke and recently underwent surgery to install a stent in his heart. He wore a medical alert necklace and carried an informational card and emergency contacts in his wallet, as well as medication in his car.

Price, who lives in Bakersfield, Calif., said she believes the seizure Hankins experienced may have been related to diabetes and the accident may have been the result of a medical emergency.

Franklin County Coroner Dan Blasdel said an autopsy is planned Wednesday to determine the cause of death.

Franklin County Sheriff Jim Raymond said intake officers were not able to complete a medical screening because Hankins was uncommunicative and uncooperative during booking.

The sheriff confirmed Hankins did not receive insulin, which diabetics use to regulate blood sugar, during the less than 24 hours he spent at the jail.

Raymond said the case has been submitted to the county prosecutor’s office for review. The jail is reviewing its procedures as well, he said.

Pierce said her son was on a cross-country road trip from Hot Springs to Bakersfield by way of the Northwest on a mission to clear his head after recent setbacks.

Pierce didn’t want to second-guess police but said his necklace, wallet card and medications should have been factored in when he was arrested, she said.

“He wasn’t very well,” she said. “They have a hard job. But sometimes they overlook things.”

She described him as a a happy-go-lucky man with a daughter and grandson in Bakersfield. In addition to diabetes and the effects of the stroke, Hankins was disabled by a back injury.

In the past, he worked with horses at Oaklawn Racing & Gaming, a racetrack in Hot Springs.

Pierce said she was surprised to learn her son was in Pasco. He had left a message for his mother when he was in Idaho and later called to let her know he was in Washington, though he was not certain where.

Pierce thought he planned to cross Washington on Interstate 90 before heading south to California. She was not sure why he turned south to Pasco. She suspects he was running short on money and was cutting his trip short.

“I wish I could ask him,” she said.

This story was originally published July 31, 2017 at 7:04 PM with the headline "Autopsy set for diabetic who died in Franklin County custody."