Policy Text
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2025/05/09, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Santa Clara County Office of the
Sheriff Reviewing and Reporting In -Custody Deaths -
1 Santa Clara County Office of the Sheriff
Custody Manual
Reviewing and Reporting In- Custody Deaths
518.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
This policy provides direction for notifications, reporting, and review of in-custody deaths (15 CCR
1046).
518.1.1 DEFINITIONS
Definitions related to this policy include:
In-custody death - The death of any person, for whatever reason (natural, suicide, homicide,
accident), who is in the process of being booked or is incarcerated at any facility of the Santa
Clara County Office of the Sheriff.
Death incident - Any event where a person died in the custody or supervision of the jails. (Penal
Code § 832.10).
518.2 POLICY
It is the policy of the Sheriff's Office Custody Bureau to follow state and local guidelines regarding
notifications and reporting in- custody deaths.
518.
3 MANDATORY REPORTING
Within 10 days of an in- custody death, the Sheriff's Office shall:
(a) Issue a report, in writing, to the Attorney General (Govt. Code § 12525);
(b) Submit a copy of the in -custody death report, submitted to the Attorney General, to
the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) (15 CCR 1046) .
Any change in information previously reported or posted, including but not limited to the cause
and manner of death, shall be updated within 10 days to the Attorney General (Govt. Code 12525)
and within the 30 days to the public website.
If the decedent is temporarily housed from another agency and dies in Sheriff's Office custody, the Division Commander or the authorized designee shall notify that agency of the death.
Pursuant to Article 37 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations 1963, in the case of the death of a foreign national, telephonic notification to the appropriate consulate post should be
made without unreasonable delay and confirmatory written notification shall be made within 72
hours of the death to the appropriate consulate post. The notification shall include the incarcerated
person's name, personal file number, date and time of death, and the attending physician's name.
In the event that a juvenile was mistakenly booked in Sheriff's Office custody and dies, the Division
Commander or the authorized designee shall notify the court of jurisdiction and the Medical Examiner -Coroner will notify the juvenile offender's next of kin (15 CCR 1047).
Within 30 days of the death, an initial death review must be conducted by the Assistant Sheriff of
Custody Operations or the authorized designee with Adult Custody Health Services (ACHS) leadership from medical and mental health, and other health care and supervision staff relevant Policy
518
Docusign Envelope ID: BE21296F-5725-4ACC-BD2A-C4DE0153F871
Santa Clara County Office of the Sheriff
Custody Manual
Reviewing and Reporting In -Custody Deaths
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2025/05/09, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Santa Clara County Office of the
Sheriff Reviewing and Reporting In -Custody Deaths -
2
to t
he death incident. A copy of that initial review report shall be submitted to BSCC within 60 days
of the death, and contain the information required by 15 CCR 1046. All information submitted to
BSCC is disclosable under the California Public Records Act (Penal Code § 832.10).
518.
4 NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE
Upon determining that an in-custody death has occurred, the Watch Commander is responsible for
ensuring that the Sheriff or the authorized designee and all appropriate investigative authorities, including the Medical Examiner, are notified without delay and all written reports are completed
(Please see County policy on Notification of Major or Sensitive Incidents for further details).
The Watch Commander shall also promptly notify the Division Commander and make any other
notifications required by policy or direction. The Division Commander shall observe all pertinent
laws and allow appropriate investigating agencies full access to all facts surrounding the death.
The Sheriff's Office shall establish policies and procedures for the investigation of any in-custody
death.
518.4.1 NOTIFICATION OF THE NEXT -OF-KIN
The Office of the Medical Examiner -Coroner is responsible for investigation and classification of
in-custody deaths (Govt. Code 27491). Further, the Medical Examiner -Coroner is responsible for
notifying the next -of-kin in the event of the in- custody death.
Sheriff's Office staff shall not contact the incarcerated persons family, friends, or other interested
parties regarding an in-custody death unless or until the Medical Examiner -Coroner has completed
the death notification. A decision to communicate with the family after the Medical Examiner -
Coroner's death notification shall be escalated to the Assistant Sheriff of Custody Operations or the authorized designee.
518.5 IN-CUSTODY DEATH REVIEW
The Sheriff is responsible for establishing a team of qualified staff to