Man Dies After Panicked Encounter Inside Dallas Jail

Authorities say a panic-stricken man who dashed into a Dallas County jail lobby shouting that his wife was chasing him to kill him has died after being handcuffed and losing consciousness.

Dallas County sheriff's spokesman Raul Reyna said the 48-year-old man, later identified as Joseph Sheldon Hutcheson, parked in a crosswalk in front of the county's central jail and behaved erratically as he ran into a lobby late Saturday morning, calling for a supervisor.

Hutcheson ran into another lobby area, where a deputy handcuffed him to try to prevent him from hurting himself or others, Reyna said.

The deputy had just sat the man down when Hutcheson became unresponsive and stopped breathing, police said.

Efforts to revive him failed and he was pronounced dead about 11:30 a.m.

A cause of death has not been determined.

Authorities say a panic-stricken man who dashed into a Dallas County jail lobby shouting that his wife was chasing him to kill him has died after being handcuffed and losing consciousness.

The Dallas County Sheriff’s Department are looking for  witnesses to the incident.

Investigators told NBC 5 they believe there are numerous individuals who witnessed all or part of this incident that could provide valuable information.

"The more information we have, the better," said Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez. "Witnesses could provide detectives with valuable details concerning the incident, as the investigation remains ongoing.”

Anyone with information on the incident is urged to call the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department Criminal Investigations Section at 214-653-3489 or 214-653-3490.

NBC 5's Holley Ford contributed to this report.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
Contact Us