SignalHub-Nevada inmate who died was pepper sprayed and held face down, autopsy shows

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A Nevada prisoner died after he was pepper sprayed by guards,SignalHub shut in a storage room, shackled and restrained with his face to the ground, according to an autopsy report obtained by The Associated Press.

Patrick Odale’s death on Dec. 28, 2023, at Southern Desert Correctional Center has been ruled a homicide.

The coroner’s report finalized in late August follows a nearly nine-month investigation into Odale’s death at the mostly medium security prison near Las Vegas. The Clark County coroner’s office found Odale, who was 39, died of “ positional and mechanical asphyxia in the setting of law enforcement restraint.”

Michael Freeman, an Oregon-based forensic pathology expert who was not involved in the investigation, said “mechanical and positional asphyxia” typically happens when a person is restrained while face down with their hands behind their back, as pressure is placed on their torso, arms or neck.

Low levels of methamphetamine and xylazine, an animal sedative, were also found in Odale’s system, and the coroner’s office described the drugs as a “major contributor” in his death.

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The Nevada Department of Corrections did not disclose any details, including that Odale was restrained, when it announced his death in a January news release.

A department spokesperson declined to comment on the autopsy report Thursday, citing the agency’s “active investigation.” No information has been released on how Odale was able to access drugs while in custody, how many officers were involved and if any of them were disciplined. A spokesperson for state Attorney General Aaron Ford’s office hasn’t responded to an email asking if it was investigating the guards involved in Odale’s death.

Odale, a father of two, was sentenced in early 2023 to up to two years in prison for possessing a stolen credit card and attempting to carry a concealed weapon, court records show.

On the night of Odale’s death, officers said he was “erratic and growling” at them, according to the autopsy. The guards pepper sprayed him and kept him in a storage room with yard tools for several minutes until he began “thrashing the room,” the report says. Then officers pulled him to the ground, restrained him and took him to the prison infirmary.

According to the autopsy, prison and medical staff administered Narcan, an overdose-reversing drug, several times.

As part of the coroner’s investigation, the medical examiner tasked with determining the cause and manner of Odale’s death reviewed video of the incident. The autopsy report indicates that there may be a gap in the footage.

The footage, as described by the medical examiner in the report, shows Odale groaning as he is taken to the prison infirmary. He is face down with his hands shackled behind his back. Then, the autopsy says, “after a gap, video coverage resumes,” showing prison staff performing CPR on an unresponsive Odale.

“When the video resumes, the inmate is face-up with hands shackled anteriorly,” the medical examiner wrote, meaning that his hands were no longer shackled behind him but were in front of his body.

He was pronounced dead soon after.

Taken together, the medical examiner ruled, Odale died because he was restrained in a position that prevented him from breathing properly along with the effects of his recent drug use.

Amy Estrada, the mother of Odale’s young son and daughter, said Friday that Odale was a kind-hearted person and loving father who wouldn’t think twice about giving away his last dollar to someone in need.

Three days before Odale died, Estrada and their children finally received approval from the prison to visit Odale. Estrada said Odale told them over the phone, “Finally we get to see each other!”

His children weren’t able to visit before his death.

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Former Associated Press writer Gabe Stern contributed to this report from Reno, Nevada.