Keith Bach
Keith Galen Bach, 63, was a Navy veteran who later worked for more than two decades as a heating and air technician for the city of San Diego, and he had been married to his wife Cecilia for 35 years. He had Type 1 diabetes and relied on an insulin pump, and he died on September 28, 2023, while held at the Central Jail in downtown San Diego. According to his widow's lawsuit and the San Diego County medical examiner, he did not receive the insulin or medical follow-up he needed, and the examiner ruled his death a homicide due to neglect, citing diabetic ketoacidosis. The sheriff's office said it was investigating, and in March 2025 the district attorney declined to file criminal charges against any individual, while his widow's civil lawsuit remains pending.
Cause of death, as reported: Died from neglect by staff (disputed). The medical examiner ruled the death a homicide from diabetic ketoacidosis due to neglect, and his widow's lawsuit says jail staff and medical providers failed to refill his insulin pump and gave him no insulin for at least 19 hours.
Reported by: San Diego County Medical Examiner (medical examiner or coroner); Cecilia Bach, widow, via lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His widow, Cecilia Bach, sued San Diego County, the sheriff, the jail's medical provider and the Chula Vista Police Department over his death, and the civil lawsuit is pending.
News reports (4)
- In unusual rebuke of San Diego County sheriff, coroner rules diabetic man’s jail death a homicide by neglect
- In 5 years since investigation, little progress in stopping deaths in San Diego County jails - San Diego Union-Tribune
- ‘They took away the love of my life’: Widow sues over diabetic man’s death in California jail
- No one will be criminally charged in San Diego County jail homicide, DA says - San Diego Union-Tribune