Hmmm,
a lady died lastnight in my jail. I tried to bring her back to life along with two other guys. We did not have any success. We performed CPR on her for eight minutes before the EMT's showed up.
Death is a strange thing.
When I got home from work yesterday I just held my son. He asked me what was wrong. I told him that I had a hard time at work so he asked me if I wanted to go ride our bikes together. I accepted his invitation. I am thankful for my son and his little brother. I am thankful for my bride. I am thankful for all my breaths. Watching someone die puts a lot of things into perspective.
We had to go to a meeting afterwards to talk about the incident. It's strange, I keep going on this rollercoaster of emotions. I don't feel responsible for her death. When she was taken to the hospital, her blood was so thick and clotted that the medical personnel were unable to draw blood for testing. Her liver had failed. She literally drank herself to death.
I looked at her thirty minutes before she died. She was on her feet. I didn't take the time to look her in the eye though. Maybe I would have seen something in those eyes. You know how a cat knows when it's going to die? I wonder if Reyna (not her real name) knew that she was at the end of her life. There's nothing I could have done. The nurses at FMC said that with the best triage nurses she would have died. It's just such an odd thing to hold a dead woman, trying to breathe life back into her.
Sorry for the downer post, but that's where I am today and talking about it helps.
Here's my visual response to the last few days.
Cameron woman dies in jail cell
By LARRY HENDRICKS
Sun Staff Reporter
09/20/2005
A Cameron woman was found dead in her jail cell Sunday morning.
While an autopsy is still pending, jail officials are assuming she died from health complications related to her alcoholism. It is the second such death this year.
Rena Yazzie, 51, did not wake up for the breakfast call at 6 a.m., said Kurt Braatz, commander at the Coconino County Detention Facility.
"She was unresponsive," Braatz said, adding that jail staff gave Yazzie CPR until medics arrived. She was taken to Flagstaff Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 7:37 a.m.
Detective Mike Sifling of the Coconino County Sheriff's Office said preliminary indications from hospital staff is that Yazzie's health problems stemmed from liver failure. At this time, Sifling added that there are no indications of foul play.
"There are indications she had problems with alcohol," Sifling added. Yazzie has had numerous contacts with local law enforcement agencies. Her family also confirmed her struggle with alcohol.
According to Flagstaff Municipal Court records, Yazzie has a variety of convictions associated with alcohol use.
Braatz said that Yazzie had been arrested Saturday morning during a traffic stop conducted by an officer with the Arizona Department of Public Safety.
The driver of the vehicle was charged with DUI. The passenger, Yazzie, was found to have a warrant out for her arrest from Flagstaff City Court for failing to appear for court appearances in connection with a false reporting to law enforcement charge.
Braatz said Yazzie was booked into jail at 11:30 a.m. At the time she was processed, her blood-alcohol level was .135, above the legal limit for driving. According to jail policy, people can be booked into the jail without a trip to the hospital for observation as long as their blood-alcohol level is below .25.
A blood-alcohol level above .25 requires a trip to the hospital for the inmate to be stabilized.
At the time she was booked, Braatz said jail medical staff put her on a detox protocol, which is a procedure to minimize the effects of alcohol withdrawal.
Braatz said Yazzie complained of cramping in her legs Saturday, which is typical of alcohol detoxification.
Sifling said an autopsy scheduled Wednesday. A toxicology screen will be conducted. The results can take up to a month.
"The autopsy will answer a lot of questions we have about what was going on inside her," Sifling said.
The case remains under investigation.
In March, another inmate being treated for alcohol withdrawal became ill and was taken to FMC, where he later died. The inmate had a variety of health-related issues connected with his diabetes.
And here's an Egon Schieleish creative endeavor.
