Anchorage inmate dies in custody

It’s the eighth death in custody for Alaska correctional facilities this year.

Thursday, August 18, 2022 4:35pm

An inmate at Anchorage Correctional Complex died last week, bringing total deaths in custody for the Alaska Department of Corrections to eight in 2022, according to a department news release. (Screenshot)

An inmate at Anchorage Correctional Complex died in custody last week, according to an Alaska Department of Corrections news release.

David Eric Bristow, 62, was pronounced dead at 6:05 a.m. on Aug. 8, said DOC spokesperson Betsy Holley in a news release.

Foul play is not suspected, Holley said in the news release, and the death is not COVID-related. The cause of death has not been released, Holley said, but is under investigation by the Alaska State Troopers, standard procedure for a death in custody.

0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%

00:00

The DOC does not release any medical information, Holley said in an email. Bristow’s next of kin have been notified, Holley said.

Bristow had been in DOC custody since July 21, 2022, arrested on felony charges for possession of child pornography, attempted production of child pornography and sexual exploitation of a child- production, Holley said.

The death is the eighth this year in DOC custody, Holley said. 2020 and 2021 both saw nine deaths, Holley said, and COVID did not significantly affect those numbers.

• Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or mlockett@juneauempire.com.