19-year-old dies in Indiana police custody

Michael Anthony Adams | The Indianapolis Star

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana State Police detectives are investigating the death of a 19-year-old inmate who died in police custody Monday after he was found unconscious in the back of a jail transport van.

The unidentified male teenager was arrested by the Greenwood Police Department Sunday night and was booked into the Johnson County Jail Monday morning on preliminary charges of reckless possession of paraphernalia.

At some point between the time he was booked and noon Monday, police said the inmate was seen by the jail nurse, who asked that the 19-year-old be taken to the hospital.

According to police, the inmate was conscious and walked himself to and into the jail transport van. When the vehicle arrived at Johnson Memorial Hospital, which is next door to the jail, officials found the teenager unresponsive.

"He was rushed into the emergency room where life saving measures were attempted and were unsuccessful," a release from the Johnson County Sheriff's office stated.

State Police investigators and Crime Lab technicians have been processing the scene throughout the day, interviewing witnesses and collecting evidence, the release said.

A Johnson County coroner will perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death Tuesday morning.