Jail is Dangerous?

Who would have thought?

• The death of a Cook County Jail inmate last fall is raising questions about whether staff could have done more to save him after the medical examiner’s office ruled his death a homicide.

  Martinez Duncan, 24, died on the evening of Nov. 20 after his cellmate started a fire inside their locked cell according to a Cook County sheriff’s office spokesperson.

  A preliminary review found the fire was caused by a lit wick, or “a smoldering portion of tightly wound toilet paper commonly used to smoke illegal drugs,” the sheriff’s office said.

  Duncan and his cellmate were removed from their cell as jail staff attempted to put out the fire, the spokesperson said in a statement. They were then cuffed and taken to a holding area to receive medical care. After that, the staff left the holding area to tend to the fire.

  In the meantime, “Duncan’s body slumped forward in the holding area and remained in that position until correctional staff and medical staff returned,” the spokesperson said.

So is this a positional asphyxia death or smoke inhalation aggravated by health issues?

And does it count against Chicago's running totals from last year?

We were stretching to find stuff interesting enough to write about, so this made it.