Luis Romero
Luis Romero, 44, died on March 9, 2019, in his cell at Corcoran State Prison in California, where staff found him during a morning security check around 7:30 a.m. An autopsy report released by the state says he bled to death from multiple sharp force trauma injuries, and prosecutors say his cellmate killed him; the cellmate has been charged with murder and has pleaded not guilty. A state inspector general report found that guards on rounds recorded both men as alive shortly before the body was discovered and faulted the corrections department's investigation, which the department disputes. The family's lawsuit questions why the cell was not checked, and his mother's attorney said that had the required checks been done, Romero would be alive today.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody (disputed; neglect alleged). Prosecutors and the coroner say Romero was killed by his cellmate, while the family's lawsuit and state inspector general reports question why guards did not check the cell, and the corrections department disputes the inspector general's findings.
Reported by: Kings County Assistant District Attorney Phil Esbenshade (court); Kings County Coroner's Office (medical examiner or coroner); California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (the agency that held him); state inspector general; family's lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His family sued over his death at Corcoran State Prison, and the case has no reported settlement or award amount.
Sources (12)
- Corcoran prison inmate killed. Suspect is a convicted murderer, CDCR officials say
- ‘Sadistic’ details emerge as DA charges Corcoran prisoner accused of murdering cellmate
- Graphic details emerge in case of Corcoran inmate's murder
- California killer accused of beheading, torturing cellmate at Corcoran State Prison
- California inmate decapitated cellmate, severed body parts, police say
- California killer accused of beheading, torturing cellmate
- California prisoner kills cellmate, grisly details emerge
- Graphic details emerge as California prisoner accused of decapitating cellmate
- California killer accused of beheading, torturing cellmate
- Convicted killer accused of torturing, beheading cellmate
- Corcoran inmate died of multiple sharp force trauma injuries, Kings County Coroner says
- Prison Guards Didn't Notice After a California Inmate Was Beheaded in His Cell, Report Says