RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Authorities in North Carolina say that a federal inmate being held at the Wake County Detention Center has killed himself.
The Raleigh News & Observer reports that Wake County Sheriff Gerald Baker said the inmate did not show any signs of crisis when he was admitted.
The sheriff said the unidentified inmate was found unresponsive in his cell shortly after 7 p.m. The sheriff did not say what the inmate had been charged with. But he was being held on a “housing assistance request” from federal prison officials.
The sheriff’s office said that incoming inmates are screened by a nurse as well as a counselor for any mental health illness. Anyone who screens “positive” is referred to a psychiatrist.
Baker said the inmate’s attorney visited him Wednesday. But he said he did not know what transpired during the meeting.
“Looking at the times, you know, we’re dealing with the pandemic, we’re dealing with folks who are struggling and having a hard time financially, economically,” Baker said. “All kinds of things are going on.”
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