Three Correctional Deputies Arrested On Murder Charges After Santa Clara County Inmate Found Dead
SAN JOSE (CBS SF) -- Three Santa Clara County correctional deputies have been arrested Thursday on suspicion of murdering an inmate.
Rafael Rodriguez, Jereh Lubrin and Matthew Farris were arrested in the death of a 31-year-old man who was an inmate at the jail, sheriff's Sgt. James Jensen said.
UPDATE: Medical Examiner Says Santa Clara Co. Jail Inmate Died Of Blunt Force Injuries
The trio was arrested on suspicion of murder, conspiracy and assault.
They are being held without bail and are scheduled for arraignment on Tuesday, according to jail records.
Court documents identify the jail inmate who died in custody as Michael James Tyree, a 31-year-old white man whose address is listed as "transient."
Tyree was arrested for petty theft, but he has a history of drug arrests and mental illness.
The sheriff's office, which runs the jail, said officers found him dead in his cell last Thursday.
"A correctional deputy was doing a welfare check, came across an inmate who was unresponsive," said Sgt. James Jensen of the Santa Clara Co. Sheriff's Office. "He called for other deputies. Medical aid was rendered, fire and paramedics were called, and they pronounced our inmate deceased at the scene in the jail."
The San Jose Mercury News cited unnamed sources who say Tyree was involved in a use of force incident with correctional officers over taking his medication, hours before he was found dead.
