Eric Van Tine
Eric Van Tine was 40 and had struggled with schizophrenia; he had moved to San Diego hoping to start a new life, and his brother Matthew said he knew the area well from visits since childhood. His family's attorney, Julia Yoo, says he was attacked by a cellmate in a triple-bunked cell at the San Diego Central Jail in December 2023, which left him with a traumatic brain injury and a four-month coma. He later developed a severe lung infection, was placed on life support, and died in November 2024 after his family chose to withdraw care. He was released from custody before he died, and the San Diego County Sheriff's Office does not count the death as a jail death, while advocate Yusef Miller argues that it should be counted.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody (disputed). The family's attorney says a cellmate beat him unconscious in December 2023, causing a brain injury and later a lung infection that killed him, while the Sheriff's Office does not count the death because he was no longer in custody.
Reported by: Julia Yoo, attorney for Van Tine's family (family or their lawyers); San Diego County District Attorney's office; Yusef Miller, Saving Lives in Custody California (advocates).