The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, under the directorship of Sheriff Richard Wiles, filed an amended custodial death report (CDR) about Vincent Leyva on April 24, 2023. The report was updated to show autopsy results. The Medical Examiner found that the manner of death was accidental. The medical cause of death was esophageal rupture, and a contributing cause of death was acute mixed drug toxicity (methamphetamine, fentanyl). Mr. Leyva was 42 years old when he was declared deceased at Las Palmas Medical Center in El Paso, Texas, on March 16, 2023. He was still in the jail’s custody when he died.

 In a Jail Outside Texas, 6 Inmates Overdosed on Fentanyl in 17 Days

There were six inmates in a jail outside Texas who overdosed on fentanyl from March 1 through 17, 2023. Of those six, two inmates died.

On March 9, a man in his 20s was found unresponsive in his cell. He was transported to a local hospital, where he died on March 13. A 36-year-old man was found unresponsive in his cell on March 14. He, too, was taken to a nearby hospital. The man died on March 15.

The four inmates who survived fentanyl overdoses were saved because the jail staff administered Narcan. The two men who died were also given CPR and Narcan, but they weren’t revived.   

Learn more in Part 1 of this continuing series.

Providing help to inmates now or formerly detained in a Texas municipal or county jail is one of the purposes of this website. There is never an intention of inferring that wrongs have occurred on the part of people or entities.

–Guest Contributor