FORT WORTH, Texas — A Tarrant County inmate died in custody Sunday after a “medical emergency,” jail officials said.
Anthony Johnson, 31, became unresponsive during an altercation with detention officers and was transported to John Peter Smith Hospital, where he was pronounced dead just after 10 a.m.
The altercation occurred during cell checks for contraband, according to a press release from the Tarrant County Sherriff’s Office. When detention officers approached Johnson’s cell, he refused to exit and began to fight officers who used Oleoresin Capsicum, or pepper spray, to subdue Johnson, according to the release.
Johnson became unresponsive while being examined by JPS medical staff, who immediately rendered CPR before transporting him to JPS Hospital where he was later pronounced dead, the release stated.
A Tarrant County Detention Officer was also injured and transported to the hospital with not life threatening injuries.
Johnson is the sixth person to die in the Tarrant County jail this year, according to records from the Texas Attorney General’s Office.
Johnson was arrested Friday by the Saginaw Police Department, whose officers were responding to reports of a man wielding a knife at a motorist. Johnson allegedly fled but was caught and charged with possession of a controlled substance, tampering with physical evidence and evading arrest, according to officials.
Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn asked the Texas Rangers to lead the investigation into Johnson’s death. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner will release the cause of death when next of kin have been notified.
