David J. Tom, 34, of Lafayette, Indiana was found unresponsive in his one man cell during a routine check by jail staff.
Tom had been in custody since his arrest by Lafayette Police on the morning of Thursday, December 11th. He was later booked into the Tippecanoe County Jail at around 6:52 a.m. and charged in Tippecanoe County Superior Court 5 with one count each of Domestic Battery, Criminal Confinement, and Battery by Strangulation. He was being held on a $5,000.00 Surety Bond.
According to Sheriff Tracy Brown, the investigation into Tom’s death continues and the results of an autopsy are pending.
This is no surprise, considering new inmates and kept in holding in their cell 23 hours a day an average of 35 days. It can take them up to a week to get a response for medical service. This is a result of overcrowding. I recently searched and found stories of overcrowding from 2000/2001 and obviously no one has done anything about this issue. Its time someone does something, dogs at the pound are treated better than inmates at the Tippecanoe County Jail.