Sharon Rice Jones
Sharon Rice Jones was remembered by her sister as someone who attended college, started a career in drafting and raised two children. She died in the medical unit of the San Juan County Adult Detention Center in January 2015, and the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator's autopsy report attributes her death to sepsis from a Group A streptococcal infection. A woman held in the unit with her said Jones moaned in pain through the night and that staff delayed or ignored requests for a nurse to check on her; the sheriff's office has not confirmed this. Her family's attorney says the death was preventable, and the sheriff's office closed its investigation without filing charges.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of illness (disputed; neglect alleged). The medical examiner's autopsy ruled sepsis from a Group A streptococcal infection; a former inmate says staff ignored her requests for a nurse as she moaned in pain overnight, and her family's attorney says the death was preventable.
Reported by: New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator (medical examiner or coroner); former inmate held in the same unit; her family's attorney (family or their lawyers).