Quincy Baker
Quincy Baker, 39, had paranoid schizophrenia and a long history of mental health treatment, and his mother, Sheila, had been his guardian since 2012. He had been hearing voices and had been hospitalized before for mental health care. He died on September 5, 2021, at the St. Louis City Justice Center, where court documents cited by a columnist say he was found in an intake-area cell with a T-shirt around his neck, tied to a bar on the wall, and he was declared dead at the hospital; an autopsy report reviewed by KSDK listed hanging as the cause and suicide as the manner. His mother's lawsuit against the city settled in June 2026 for $500,000 with a confidentiality clause, and the columnist argues that the hospital sent him to jail instead of continuing his care.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (neglect alleged). The autopsy ruled the death a suicide by hanging, and a columnist argues the hospital sent him to jail instead of continuing his psychiatric care despite his known mental illness.
Reported by: autopsy report reviewed by KSDK I-Team (medical examiner or coroner); KSDK I-Team (reporters); his mother's lawsuit against the city of St. Louis (family or their lawyers); St. Louis columnist citing court documents (reporters).
Lawsuit: His mother sued the city of St. Louis, which settled the case in June 2026 for $500,000 under a confidentiality clause.