Deputies investigating after man dies while waiting for medical clearance following DUI arrest
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AMMON — The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office says a man who had just been arrested collapsed and died Thursday night while at the hospital for a medical clearance.
According to a news release from the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office, around 11 p.m. Thursday night, Bonneville County Sheriff’s deputies and the Idaho Falls Fire Department responded to the Walmart parking lot in Ammon for a car crash with injuries.
When deputies arrived, they saw that a car had crashed into some storage containers, and the driver, an adult man, was reportedly “in the process of huffing compressed air canisters.” There were no other passengers in the car.
The driver was checked by ambulance personnel and detained for suspicion of DUI before being taken to a local hospital to get a blood sample and a medical clearance.
While at the hospital, the man reportedly collapsed, and emergency room personnel began attempting life-saving measures but were unable to revive him.
“Because the man was in custody and in the arrest process as part of the crash investigation, Bonneville County Sheriff Samuel Hulse requested assistance from the Tri-County Sheriff’s Association to investigate,” says the release. “Cooperative assistance from the Tri-County Sheriffs Association is common when there is a death of an in-custody inmate or arrestee utilizing uninvolved, neutral agencies for the investigation. The Bonneville County Coroner’s Office is also assisting with the investigation.”
The Sheriff’s Office says no other occupants were in the vehicle at the time of the crash, and no other persons were injured.
The investigation is ongoing, and no further information is available at this time.