Investigations are underway into the death of a man in El Paso police custody who was arrested after allegedly jumping on parked cars after being kicked out of an Upper Valley bar.
An autopsy will determine what caused the death of the 50-year-old man in what began as a drunk disturbance call early Sunday, Dec. 28, at a small retail strip at 4907 Crossroads Drive by Doniphan Drive, El Paso Police Department spokesman Officer Adrian Cisneros said.
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The identity of the man who died in custody has not been disclosed. Police body camera video has yet to be released.
As is standard practice, the death is under three separate investigations by El Paso police detectives with the Crimes Against Persons Unit, EPPD Internal Affairs and the Texas Rangers of the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Man dies in El Paso police custody
At 1:18 a.m. Sunday, police officers responding to the drunk disturbance call located the man and proceeded to arrest him for public intoxication, Cisneros said.
A man died after being arrested by El Paso police during a drunk disturbance call on Sunday, Dec. 28, in the 4900 block of Crossroads Drive. File art.
The man allegedly began resisting while being arrested and officers used unspecified force before ultimately taking him into custody and placing him inside a patrol car, Cisneros said. El Paso Fire Department paramedics were sent to check on the man’s injuries.
“During the time he was in the patrol car, he became unresponsive and stopped breathing,” Cisneros said, adding that officers removed the man from the car and started CPR.
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CPR was continued by paramedics who transported the man to a hospital, where he died, Cisneros said.
Daniel Borunda may be reached at dborunda@elpasotimes.com and @BorundaDaniel on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Man dies in El Paso police custody after drunk disturbance arrest