Homicide detectives are investigating after a 42-year-old man was found unconscious in a patrol car and later died, San Diego Police officials said.
The incident happened just before 3 a.m. Sunday morning when SDPD officers received a call about a man trying to jump a fence and cause a disturbance downtown outside the House of Metamorphosis, a drug rehabilitation home.
When officers arrived on scene, they found the 42-year-old man, whose identity has not been released, yelling outside the house on 30th and Market Street.
Police say the man was under the influence of a controlled substance and that they found drugs on him.
The man was then arrested and brought to the men's Central Jail downtown for prisoner processing. When the man was taken into custody, he was cooperative and no force was used, police said.
Police were going to get him out of the patrol car and book him when they noticed he was unconscious. Officers tried CPR, but he did not respond, so they called an ambulance, they said.
The man was taken to UC San Diego, where he died just before 5 a.m.
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The officers involved were wearing body cameras that were on, San Diego Police Lt. Manny Del Toro told NBC7. The incident is under investigation.
“We do take this very seriously hence we do have a full homicide team out here with personnel from the lab conducting a full investigation. The officers [involved] will have to undergo a full investigation and they’ll be interviewed. They did have body worn cameras, where we have the entire incident on video. We’ll be investigating that as well,” said Del Toro.
The man had a criminal history, police said. It is unclear whether he was a patient at the House of Metamorphosis or not.
