Inmate Adam Varnedoe Dies in Chatham County Jail
Adam Lewis Varnedoe was 45 years old and an inmate at Chatham County Jail when he was discovered unresponsive in his cell at 10:45 a.m. on June 25, 2025. Lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful, and Mr. Varnedoe was pronounced deceased in his cell minutes later at 11:50 a.m. The Chatham County Sheriff’s Office has asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) to investigate the death.
An autopsy will be conducted by the GBI Crime Lab in Pooler, Georgia, to determine the cause of Mr. Varnedoe’s death.
The address of Chatham County Jail is 1050 Carl Griffin Dr, Savannah, GA 31405. The jail’s bed capacity is 2,300.
Who is Responsible When Jail Inmates Die of Preventable Causes?
Jails can and should be held accountable when acts such as neglect, abuse, or medical neglect result in an inmate’s death. Holding jails responsible for preventable inmate deaths is similar to proving the facts in other criminal negligence cases. A wrongful death in jail can also occur due to indifference, and it is important to pursue justice as quickly as possible.
The following are stories of U.S. jail deaths in which inmates allegedly died of preventable causes:
Kelly Coltrain, 27, Dies of Preventable Causes in Mineral County Jail
Twenty-seven-year-old Kelly Coltrain of Texas was arrested and placed in Nevada’s Mineral County Jail. Having advised the staff that she was drug dependent and suffered from seizures, she was placed in a detox cell.
Ms. Coltrain asked for medical attention at a hospital, but it was denied. A jail sergeant’s response to her pleas for help was to hand her a mop and request that she clean up her vomit in the cell. Ms. Coltrain died less than an hour later after suffering a seizure.
Her body lay there for almost 6 hours before a deputy discovered her dead, though she was supposed to be observed face-to-face every 30 minutes. A video shows that the deputy did not call paramedics. He used the toe of his boot to nudge her and then left the cell to call his sergeant.
Treatments are available for severe withdrawal symptoms, and Ms. Coltrain’s family was devastated because if she had received appropriate medical care, her loss would likely have been prevented.
The address of Mineral County Jail is 105 South A Street, Hawthorne, NV 89415. The jail has an inmate capacity of 102.
Gabino Balderas Jr., 26, Dies in an Alleged Preventable Suicide in Kent County Jail
Gabino Balderas Jr. was booked in Michigan’s Kent County Jail, where the jail staff was aware that he was suicidal with a history of suicide attempts. Yet, he was left alone for 43 minutes in a jail recreation and day room. Mr. Balderas walked into a shower, where there were no cameras. When a deputy returned, the inmate was discovered hanging and unresponsive in the shower. Mr. Balderas was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.
According to the Kent County Sheriff, Mr. Balderas met with the county’s mental health authority 13 times during his four weeks in Kent County Jail. His last visit was three days before he was discovered hanging.
Jail suicides are investigated as a general rule, but the family was asking for answers. The death of their loved one seemed to be a preventable suicide.
The address of Kent County Jail is 703 Ball Ave NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503. The Grand Rapids jail is also known as the Kent County Correctional Facility, and it has a 1,170-bed capacity.
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