Krista DeLuca
Krista Lynn DeLuca, 23, was held at the Santa Cruz County Main Jail in September 2015 while withdrawing from heroin. Her stepfather remembered her as a sweet girl who could have turned things around with proper care, and she left a young daughter. Over about four days she repeatedly vomited and was dehydrated, and she died in the jail infirmary on September 29, 2015. The sheriff's office and an autopsy attributed her death to aspiration pneumonia, dehydration and electrolyte imbalance linked to withdrawal, while a civil grand jury reported that she asked to be taken to a hospital and was not sent, and her family and a federal lawsuit dispute the care she received.
Cause of death, as reported: Died from neglect by staff (disputed). The coroner ruled the death natural from aspiration pneumonia and dehydration caused by withdrawal vomiting, while the civil grand jury and her daughter's lawsuit say jail staff did not send her to a hospital despite her repeated vomiting and requests to go.
Reported by: Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office (Lt. Bob Payne) (the agency that held her); Santa Cruz County coroner's office (medical examiner or coroner); Santa Cruz County Civil Grand Jury (outside investigators); her daughter's lawsuit and attorney Dana Scruggs (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: A federal lawsuit filed by her daughter's attorney alleges her civil rights to reasonable medical care were violated, naming the sheriff's office and the jail's medical provider, and no settlement or award amount has been reported.
News reports (5)
- Coroner: Santa Cruz woman died from severe heroin withdrawal symptoms
- Coroner says woman's death at Santa Cruz Co. jail due to natural causes
- Detox policies questioned after latest death in Santa Cruz County Jail
- Live Oak woman’s death in jail prompts civil grand jury recommendations
- Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, medical group sued for jail death