Woman dies in Allegheny County Jail in ‘medical incident’

A 53-year-old woman in custody at the Allegheny County Jail has died after what authorities are calling a “medical incident.” According to authorities, the woman was booked into the Allegheny County Jail on Friday on charges of illegal drug possession. On Saturday morning, the woman suffered a medical incident in the jail's intake unit. Jail officials said a medical emergency was reported around 7:30 a.m. and medical personnel on site attempted life-saving measures until paramedics arrived. At 7:56 a.m., the woman was pronounced dead. County police will investigate the death and conduct an internal review. The name of the deceased woman has not been released. County Manager Sara Innamorato released a statement following the woman's death: “I want to express my condolences to the friends and family of the woman who passed away this morning at the Allegheny County Jail. While the Allegheny County Jail has made progress in improving intake procedures and medical care, there remains much work to be done. The County will investigate the incident and we will continue to seek improvements to ensure incarcerated individuals, who are often medically vulnerable and have multiple comorbidities, receive the best possible care.”