A 29-year-old woman died in police custody in Houston Sunday, police said, marking the second custody death in the city in less than 10 days.
The deaths, which are under investigation by the Houston Police Department, come amid an uproar into the case of Sandra Bland, who was found hanging in her cell in nearby Waller County on July 13. Although Waller County is part of the greater Houston metro area, the Waller County Jail and Waller County District Attorney’s office are not affiliated with the city of Houston or the Houston police.
The woman in the Houston case, whose identity has not been released, was arrested for public intoxication, the Houston police said today.
She was examined at the scene by paramedics and then taken to the Houston PD's Southeast Jail by a patrol officer, police said. "Upon arrival [at the jail] and before being booked into the jail, the woman was found to be unresponsive," police said.
Jail personnel performed CPR, police said, and she was taken to Ben Taub General Hospital where she was declared dead.
The incident is under investigation by the Houston Police Department's Homicide Division and Internal Affairs Division, ABC News reports. Autopsy and toxicology results are pending, police said.
Eight days earlier, a man who had been "showing signs of mental distress" also died in police custody, the Houston police said.
