Shelby Ashby
Shelby Ashby, 23, was held at the Georgetown County Detention Center in Georgetown, South Carolina, when she was found unresponsive in her cell in March 2024. She was taken to a hospital, where she died a few days later. The Georgetown County Sheriff's Office says she died of a suspected drug overdose after drugs got into the jail, and it has opened administrative and criminal investigations into how they entered. Her family has filed a lawsuit against the sheriff's office, Georgetown County and the detention center, saying staff failed to stop another person from smuggling in the drugs that led to her overdose.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of an overdose (neglect alleged). The sheriff's office says she died of a suspected drug overdose from drugs that reached the jail, and her family's lawsuit says staff failed to stop another inmate from smuggling them in.
Reported by: Georgetown County Sheriff's Office (the agency that held her); Sheriff Carter Weaver (the agency that held her); Ashby family lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: Her family sued Georgetown County, the Georgetown County Sheriff's Office and the detention center, alleging staff failed to stop drugs from being smuggled into the jail that led to her overdose; no settlement or award amount has been reported.
Sources (4)
- Georgetown County inmate charged after deadly suspected drug overdose in jail
- Sheriff: Georgetown County inmate dies after drugs brought into jail
- Georgetown County jail employee fired, director reassigned after inmate death
- ‘We don’t get nothing’: Victim’s family talks lawsuit involving death of inmate accused in 2020 murder