Robert Simpson Dies Upon Release from Lassen County Jail California
In California news, a Susanville inmate at Lassen County Jail was being released on August 14, 2025, when he had a medical emergency and died. Details follow.
Robert Wayne Simpson, 55, was arrested by Susanville police on August 14, 2025, on suspicion of disturbing the peace, according to a statement from the Lassen County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO). Susanville police officers had determined that Mr. Simpson was under the influence of drugs, and he was booked into the Lassen County Adult Detention Facility, which is the town jail. The expectation was that he would be released by deputies when he sobered up.
Soon after Mr. Simpson signed a citation, he was being escorted through the jail’s vehicle sally port, where he was to be released by deputies. However, according to the LCSO, Mr. Simpson experienced a medical emergency. The response from the jail’s medical staff was immediate. The Susanville Fire Department and an emergency medical services (EMS) ambulance arrived within minutes. Tragically, lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful. Robert Simpson was pronounced deceased on jail property on the same day as his arrest.
Detectives with the LCSO are investigating Mr. Simpson’s death, and they announced that an external law enforcement agency would be conducting a separate review of the circumstances surrounding his death.
No further details were provided in connection with the death of Robert Simpson.
The address of the Lassen County Jail, also known as the Lassen County Adult Detention Facility, is 1405 Sheriff Cady Lane, Susanville, CA 96130. The jail’s inmate capacity is approximately 228.
A Teenager in Minnesota’s Clay County Jail Allegedly Dies from Withdrawal Symptoms
Abby Rudolph, 19, became addicted to opioids while recovering from a hip injury that she suffered in high school. Tragically, she then turned to heroin, as countless people have done since the heroin epidemic linked to prescription opioid abuse began in about 2010.
On October 30, 2016, Ms. Rudolf was arrested for shoplifting and was then booked into Clay County Jail. It is alleged that Ms. Rudolf did not inform any corrections officers or medical staff about her withdrawal. On the second night at the jail, she was screaming all night and thrashing in her sleep and said that she was going through heroin withdrawal, which two fellow inmates allegedly wrote in a note to a guard. According to an investigative reporter, a guard said he mentioned Ms. Rudolf’s vomiting to a team leader. However, neither of them sought help for her.
A nurse tested her and found that Ms. Rudolph tested positive for opioids, along with amphetamines, methamphetamine, and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The nurse ordered a liquid diet, but nothing more.
Ms. Rudolf’s condition continued to deteriorate. According to court records and surveillance video, Ms. Rudolph was seen on the floor of her cell, unable to control her diarrhea or vomiting for hours. No medication was given to the teenager to treat the uncontrollable withdrawal symptoms that were depleting her body fluids.
On November 2, Ms. Rudolf was given a drug withdrawal assessment, which reportedly wasn’t bad enough to require contacting a doctor. She continued to exhibit uncontrollable vomiting, and, ultimately, after going into seizures, she was pronounced deceased on November 3, 2016.
The autopsy revealed that she died from acute bronchopneumonia, but also from aspiration. An expert explained the meaning of that condition. It means that a person is vomiting and coughing, and the vomit goes down their windpipe and enters their lungs.
The address of Minnesota’s Clay County Jail is 800 9th St N, Moorhead, MN 56560. The jail’s inmate capacity is approximately 220.
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