Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office Finds No Evidence of Wrongdoing in Prison Inmate’s Death
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – July 20, 2015 (Gephardt Daily) — The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office has determined that the death of Utah State Prison inmate Christopher Lucas was not the result of unlawful means by law enforcement personnel, after conducting a routine Officer Involved Critical Incident (OICI) review. Lucas, 25, died at Utah State Prison on September 13, with the manner of death being homicide.
The autopsy, released in April, showed that the cause of death was cardiopulmonary arrest following physical altercation and pepper spray exposure.
The autopsy noted that officers observed Lucas and another inmate fighting in their cell on September 13. Verbal orders to stop were ignored, and officers deployed pepper spray. Lucas collapsed as he was being walked
out of the cell. Lucas was transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Four correctional officers were placed on administrative leave at the time of the incident. The officers returned to work after approximately two weeks following an initial investigation that determined the use of force to stop the assault was appropriate.
The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office is required by Utah State law to perform joint investigations and independent reviews of officer involved critical incidents including police officers’ use of deadly (including potentially deadly) force used in the scope of police officers’ official duties.
