Oregon Inmate Reece Richeson Dies After an Attack in Jail
In Oregon news out of Oregon City dated October 27, 2025, the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office says an inmate died in the custody of the Clackamas County Jail after he was allegedly assaulted by his cellmate earlier this month.
In a press release from the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office, 26-year-old Reece Richeson had been sharing a cell in Clackamas County Jail with his cellmate since October 10, 2025. A jail deputy was collecting meal trays at about 11:30 a.m. on October 18 when he witnessed an assault involving the two inside their cell.
Several deputies responded to the scene where Mr. Richeson was discovered unresponsive and unconscious. He was quickly removed from the cell and, soon after, was transported to a local hospital. Reece Richeson was pronounced deceased at the hospital on October 21, 2025, three days after the assault.
The circumstances leading up to the assault are under continuing investigation by detectives. CCSO also said that a standard review of the jail’s policies and procedures is planned. The assault case has been referred to the Clackamas County District Attorney’s Office.
Clackamas County Jail is at 2206 Kaen Rd, Oregon City, Oregon 97045. The jail has a 434-bed capacity.
Inmate Robert Hight III was Allegedly Denied Medical Attention in Clackamas County Jail Before His Death
In a report dated September 11, 2025, Robert Hight III was an inmate in the booking process at Oregon’s Clackamas County Jail when he suffered a medical emergency. It was December 14, 2023, and his blood pressure was excessively high. Rather than being sent to a hospital for emergency treatment, he was kept overnight in the jail’s main booking area, known as the “tank.”
Mr. Hight pressed the emergency button repeatedly, saying he needed medical attention. Instead, he was moved to an isolation cell, where he continued to press the duress alarm. Ultimately, Mr. Hight collapsed inside the jail. He died three days later in a hospital. Doctors found that he had suffered a very large brain hemorrhage.
L.A. County Jails Continually Fail Inmates as the Number of Custodial Deaths Climbs
In California’s Los Angeles County jails, inmates have reportedly lived in deplorable conditions. The county jails are described as a humanitarian crisis. Authorities have outlined the conditions inmates are forced to live in as follows:
- Lack of basic access to clean water
- Inedible food
- Dirty, unsafe facilities infested with rats and roaches
- Mildew
- Overcrowding
Even more alarming is that inmates are dying. In a recent four-year period, there were 205 in-custody deaths in L.A. County. Approximately 40% were caused by suicide, homicide, and overdoses.
Authorities have called for L.A. County to begin providing inmates with the following:
- Adequate medical, mental, and dental health care;
- Protection from harm;
- Safe and humane confinement conditions; and
- Improved accommodation for the needs of disabled inmates.
In 2025 so far, there have been 40 custodial deaths in L.A. County jails, which is a high number, even by the county’s own standards. The growing rate of preventable deaths, including deaths due to denial of medical care, has been shocking.
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