Luis Santiago
Luis Santiago, 32, was held at SCI Pine Grove in Indiana County, Pennsylvania. On Tuesday night, January 1, 2019, staff found him unresponsive in his cell, and he was taken to Indiana Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. The Department of Corrections said the Indiana County coroner's preliminary finding was trauma at the hands of another person, then issued an updated release removing that claim, and the coroner said the cause was pending autopsy. Later reporting said an autopsy found asphyxia due to venous obstruction and that police ruled the death a homicide, while the coroner's office later said reports of a homicide were inaccurate, and state police continued to investigate.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody (disputed). The Indiana County coroner ruled the death a homicide from asphyxia due to venous obstruction, and state police say DNA evidence led to an arrest, but the prison first said trauma at another's hands, then withdrew that claim, and the coroner later said reports of a homicide were inaccurate.
Reported by: Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, spokeswoman Leslie Bradley (the agency that held him); Indiana County Coroner Jerry Overman (medical examiner or coroner); Pennsylvania State Police (outside investigators).
Sources (8)
- Pennsylvania Department of Corrections records, via UCLA Law Behind Bars
- Inmate facing Harrisburg drug charges killed in Pa. prison
- PSP Punxsy Opens Investigation After Inmate Found Dead at State Prison
- Death of state prison inmate under investigation in Indiana County
- Pine Grove reports death of inmate
- Pennsylvania on pace for worst year in a generation for suicides in state prisons
- State prison inmate charged with killing cellmate in Indiana County - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
- Former SCI Pine Grove inmate accused of killing cellmate