Oct. 07--DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Authorities are working to determine whether the sudden death of a Twin Towers Correctional Facility inmate was related to the punch he took to the head days earlier from a deputy.
George Rosales, 18, died early Thursday morning after being found under "medical distress" in a single-person cell located within the Correctional Treatment Center at 12:42 a.m., according to a report written by Captain Mike Parker of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
According to the report, a Custody Assistant reported that Rosales was drinking water in his cell at 12:30 a.m. About 12 minutes later, a jail nurse found him in medical distress.
Rosales reportedly died in the ambulance before reaching the hospital. He was pronounced dead at 1:30 a.m. by a doctor.
The cause of death has not yet been determined. An autopsy has been scheduled for sometime between Friday night and Tuesday to determine whether a blow the inmate had taken to the head Tuesday could have been related to his sudden death.
Rosales was reportedly punched in the head by a deputy when he made a break for the elevator. He was seen by a jail medical professional and cleared to return to jail housing.
Sheriff's investigators have yet to determine whether the punch inflicted on Rosales violated departmental policy.
The death comes at the heels of an FBI investigation into allegations of inmate abuse in Los Angeles County Jails.
Recently, a rookie deputy resigned after alleging that he had been forced to brutalize a mentally disabled inmate.
The FBI will investigate multiple reports of brutality and other deputy misconduct within the nation's largest jail system.
