Three Opioid Overdoses Reversed Within Three Days at Santa Barbara County Main Jail

Over the course of three days, three inmates at the Santa Barbara County Main Jail were found unresponsive in their cells from apparent opioid overdoses and resuscitated with Narcan, the opioid reversal drug, according to the Sheriff’s Office. 

On Thursday, September 7, custody deputies found an unresponsive male inmate lying on the ground in the dayroom, according to Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Raquel Zick, and requested emergency medical aid. Medical staff then administered two rounds of Narcan, attaching an AED to his chest. The inmate regained consciousness after the second dose and was transported to an area hospital for follow-up treatment.

In a second incident later that same day in the same housing area, another inmate was found unresponsive in his bunk at around 1:20 p.m. Emergency medical assistance was again requested, and three doses of Narcan were administered to the inmate, who regained consciousness and was also taken to the hospital.

Two days later, on Saturday, September 9, custody deputies found an unconscious male inmate in a receiving-area cell at 3:49 p.m. and radioed for medical aid. The inmate was resuscitated with one dose of Narcan and also transported to the hospital. The identities of the three inmates have not been released.

The three near-death experiences come less than a week after the in-custody death of 37-year-old Goleta resident Luis Enrique Duron Rodriguez. Rodriguez had been booked into the Main Jail on August 31 on felony charges of driving under the influence resulting in injury and hit-and-run with injuries, as well as misdemeanor reckless driving. He had been placed in a “single observation cell due to medical concerns,” and checked at regular intervals, Zick said, until early September 3, when he was discovered unresponsive and transported to a nearby hospital, where he died hours later. The cause and manner of his death remain under investigation.

Rodriguez is only the most recent inmate to die in the county jails. In May, 57-year-old inmate David Lee Ligon died in the Northern Branch Jail of an apparent drug overdose just days after another inmate, Rio Favorite Ulvaeus, 45, of Santa Barbara, died of an opioid overdose in the Main Jail. At the time of those two deaths, Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Jarrett Morris stated that the jail was implementing additional measures to reduce access to drugs while in custody. “By employing highly trained narcotic-detection canines and advanced body scanners and conducting random searches, we actively intercept and prevent the entry of fentanyl and other illicit substances into the facilities,” he said. “Equally crucial, all custody deputies are equipped with Narcan, the lifesaving antidote, empowering them to administer immediate medical assistance in case of opioid overdose emergencies.”

This summer, a Santa Barbara County Grand Jury issued four blistering reports detailing how systemic gaps in the county’s criminal justice system led to the deaths of five inmates in Santa Barbara County jails last year. (Those reports are summarized here and can be read in full online here.)

This Tuesday, September 12, the Board of Supervisors will be approving an amendment to the county’s contract with Wellpath, the medical and mental-health services provider to the county’s jails. The amendment will extend the $14.7 million contract by one year at an additional cost of $848,000. That increase is the result of a 5 percent increase in the cost of labor and 36 percent increase in the cost of pharmaceuticals.