Coroner identifies man who died in Benton County jail

A Union Gap man with a history of drug use was identified as the inmate who died in Benton County jail on Saturday morning,

Jacob L. Wilson, 28, didn’t struggle with Richland police when they found him with methamphetamine Thursday evening, said Benton County Coroner John Hansens.

Deputies reported he was uninjured when he was booked that night.

Yet, less than two days later, Wilson was dead.

The sheriff’s office said Wilson was screened for medical and mental health problems when he was booked. Staff didn’t find anything concerning.

Later, Wilson started having a medical problem, Hansens said.

Corrections officers moved Wilson into a cell where they could monitor his condition each hour.

During one of those checks at 7:26 a.m. Saturday, a corrections officer found Wilson wasn’t responding.

Benton County jail medical staff performed CPR on Wilson until Kennewick paramedics arrived.

They couldn’t revive him and pronounced him dead.

Wilson was a member of the Yakama Nation. Family members agreed to the autopsy, Hansens said. That autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday morning after the pathologist was delayed getting over Snoqualmie Pass.

The Tri-City Special Investigations Unit is investigating the death. The unit, comprised of local detectives, examines officer-involved incidents such as police shootings or deaths in jails.

Kennewick police Cmdr. Craig Littrell said detectives from Kennewick, Richland and Pasco conducted interviews, but with the autopsy still pending, there are few details available about how Wilson died.

“It just takes a long time for the information to come in,” he said.

This story was originally published January 23, 2018 at 5:32 PM with the headline "Coroner identifies man who died in Benton County jail."