Erica Portillo
Erica Portillo, 36, died on December 9, 2019, while held at the Leon County Detention Facility. A routine check found her alone and unresponsive in her cell in the early hours of the morning, and she was taken to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, where she was declared brain dead after life support. The autopsy by the medical examiner attributed her death to multi-organ failure from sudden cardiac arrest, and the Leon County Sheriff's Office said it found no foul play. Her fiance, Michael Bailey, said she had complained of pain and distress in the weeks before her death and needed more medical care, and that more should have been done for her.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of illness (disputed; neglect alleged). The medical examiner's autopsy attributes her death to multi-organ failure from sudden cardiac arrest, and the sheriff's office says she died of a cardiac event, but her fiance and others say she complained of pain and distress for weeks and needed more medical care.
Reported by: Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Lisa Flannagan (medical examiner or coroner); Leon County Sheriff's Office (the agency that held her); her fiance and others.