Inmate, 55, found dead in Florida jail cell
TAVARES, Fla. (AP) - A 55-year-old inmate has been found dead of an apparent suicide in her jail cell.
Lake County Sheriff's Sgt. Fred Jones tells news outlets that Christy Chappell was found unresponsive on Monday night, hours after being booked into the Lake County Jail following an arrest on theft and violation of probation charges.
Jones says a detention deputy found Chappell while making rounds at 11 p.m. He says she apparently placed a bedsheet around her neck, attached it to her bed and leaned forward, suffocating herself. Another deputy spoke to Chappell during 10 p.m. rounds.
Chappell was accused of stealing laundry detergent from a Dollar General store in central Florida.
Jones says inmates are screened to determine whether they are suicidal and "there was no indication that she was suicidal."