FAIRBANKS — Authorities are investigating the death of a Fairbanks Correctional Center inmate who had been treated for alcohol withdrawal before he was found unresponsive in his cell.
The Department of Corrections said in a news release that 40-year-old Joel Titus, of Fairbanks, died at a hospital Friday, The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported.
Titus had initially been denied admission to the jail for medical reasons after his Thursday arrest. He was taken to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and cleared to return to the jail that afternoon.
The department said Titus was in detox for alcohol withdrawal and taken back to the hospital Friday, where he was again medically cleared for return to the jail.
Titus started medication for outpatient detoxification before being found unresponsive by officers conducting a security check, the release says.
The officers and medical staff performed life-saving measures until emergency responders arrived, but efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.
Titus is the eighth prisoner to die in custody this year, according to the release. All prisoner deaths are reviewed by the Alaska State Troopers and the state medical examiner’s office. The Department of Corrections will also launch an internal investigation.
Titus had been arrested on suspicion of fourth-degree criminal mischief and failure to appear in court.
