Policy Text
Kern County Sheriff’s Office
Investigations Division
TITLE:
In Custody Death Investigations Guidelines
NO: B-100
APPROVED: Commander Raul Murillo
EFFECTIVE:
05/15/2008
REVIEWED:
03/24/2023
REVISED:
07/08/2020
UPDATED:
03/24/2023
B-100-1
POLICY
The Kern County Sheriff’s Office is tasked with housing prisoners in several different facilities.
The mere nature of housing prisoners takes on major responsibilities for their safety and care.
With that in mind, whenever an inmate death occurs in a Kern County facility or in the custody
of the Sheriff’s Office, the Sheriff’s Homicide Unit will respond and investigate the
circumstances surrounding the death in the most efficient, effective, and comprehensive manner.
DIRECTIVE A
In the event of an in-custody death, per Detentions Bureau Policy C-900, Detentions Staff, in
part, will preserve the scene and request Homicide Detectives to be notified, if appropriate,
through the existing protocol for call outs.
DI