Stephanie Dunbar
Stephanie Dunbar died by hanging in December 2021 while held at the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections jail in Louisville, Kentucky. According to a 2022 report by LEO Weekly, she had been held for about 18 hours in a cramped attorney booth with no bed or toilet. A state review of her death found no jail standards violations, but a later internal jail investigation found that eight officers failed to check on her regularly and that two of them fabricated observation sheets. A 2023 audit report says officers who entered her cell did not attempt resuscitation and instead slapped her bare feet, gave verbal commands and applied sternal rubs for nearly a minute.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (disputed; neglect alleged). Stephanie Dunbar died by hanging, but an internal jail investigation found that eight officers failed to check on her regularly and two fabricated observation sheets, and her family's account contests the official view of the death.
Reported by: Louisville Metro Department of Corrections (the agency that held her); internal jail investigation; David Beyer audit report (outside investigators).