Mentally ill inmate 'basically baked to death' in New York City jail
YouTube
A 56-year-old homeless man died last month in a Rikers Island jail cell due to extreme heat, according to the Associated Press. Citing a handful of anonymous officials, the AP reports that Jerome Murdough — a mentally ill veteran who was locked up for trespassing in a Harlem stairwell to escape the February cold — was found dead in a cell that had been inadvertently overheated to at least 100 degrees.
"He basically baked to death," one of the officials told the AP. Murdough was reportedly taking anti-psychotic and anti-seizure medication, which may have made him more susceptible to the heat. There is as yet no official cause of death.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
