A man in Sheriff’s Department custody who was admitted to a hospital more than two weeks ago following a fall died on Sunday evening, officials said Monday.
Donald Altmark, 71, died of a heart attack, according to preliminary autopsy results cited by the Sheriff’s Department. The manner of death was listed by the Medical Examiner’s Office as accidental.
Altmark was first booked into custody on Aug. 9 by San Diego police on suspicion of indecent exposure. On Oct. 26 he was taken to Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside after suffering a fall while in sheriff’s custody, officials said. Authorities did not provide details of the fall, including where it occurred, the circumstances or the extent of his injuries.
Altmark remained at Tri-City until his death, which was declared around 7:30 p.m. Sunday. A certified nursing assistant entered his room at that time along with a sheriff’s deputy to check his vitals and found him unresponsive. Altmark was declared dead after life-saving measures were attempted but unsuccessful.
The sheriff’s homicide unit will conduct an investigation into the death, as is protocol for all in-custody deaths.
San Diego County has seen 13 in-custody deaths so far this year.
