An inmate at Middle River Regional Jail in Verona died early Friday morning, and scarce details are being released about the cause of his death or why he was in custody.
The victim has been identified as Billy Joe Woods, 43, of Swoope, according to the Augusta County Sheriff’s Office. Online court records show Woods did not have a fixed address.
According to a court database, Woods had been “released on summons” for a misdemeanor intoxication in public charge filed on Thursday.
The daily arrest log for the ASCO shows Woods was arrested at Scenic Highway in Churchville on Wednesday, Aug. 7, on a charges of drunk in public and profane language.
Released on summons by definition means that an arrest was not made, and instead the officer issued a court summons. It is unknown if this was a clerical error by court staff or if Woods was arrested for another offense following the intoxication charge on Wednesday. A court date for the Class 4 misdemeanor charge had been set for Sept. 23.
According to the ACSO, the Augusta County Emergency Communications Center received a call from the jail at 2:50 a.m. this morning for an unresponsive inmate. Jail staff allegedly provided life-saving measures and CPR until the Staunton Augusta Rescue Squad and Augusta County Fire and Rescue arrived approximately 10 minutes after the call was received.
Life-saving measures were unsuccessful, according to the ACSO.
Woods’ body was transported to the Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.
“This is an ongoing investigation, and no further details will be released at this time,” said Augusta County Sheriff Donald L. Smith in a statement Friday night.
Online court records show an extensive record for Woods dating back to 2014 with multiple intoxication and drug offenses. The system showed Woods was also indicted on multiple child sex and pornography charges and had numerous probation violations on his record.
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Crystal Graham
