Richard Degraffenreid
Richard Degraffenreid died in the early morning hours of July 21, 2017, while held alone in his cell at the Jackson County Detention Center in Kansas City. The Kansas City Star, citing a sheriff's office investigative report, said he died of a drug overdose. According to the summary of that reporting, required staff checks had lapsed because of staff shortages, and a nurse found him not breathing. A former jail guard alleged that records were falsified to make it appear the checks had been done, and the county later paid his family $150,000 in a settlement.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of an overdose (neglect alleged). A sheriff's office investigative report, as cited by the Kansas City Star, attributes his death to a drug overdose, and a former jail guard says staff falsified records to make required checks appear to have been done while checks had lapsed due to staff shortages.
Reported by: Jackson County Sheriff's Office (the agency that held him); Kansas City Star (reporters).
Lawsuit: Jackson County later paid Richard Degraffenreid's family $150,000 in a settlement over his death in the Jackson County Detention Center.