POLK COUNTY, Fla. — On Friday, a man died while in the custody of Polk County authorities.
The 10th Judicial Circuit Officer-Involved Deadly Incident (OIDI) task team is investigating the death of Eric Nelson, 46, a registered sex offender who was arrested by Lakeland police on suspicion of methamphetamine and paraphernalia possession.
The Lakeland Police Department (LPD) detained Nelson early Friday morning after receiving a report of a probable burglary suspect running from a Taco Bell on US 98 North toward a Starbucks.
According to investigators, LPD officers discovered him in the Starbucks parking lot and checked the rucksack he was carrying.
He appeared to be under the influence of drugs, so he was placed in a private cell, where he became agitated and began repeatedly kicking the cell door, according to officials. Because of his actions and threats to deputies and other inmates, medical officials advised he would need to be placed in a medical dorm on suicide watch.
Nelson allegedly assaulted a deputy in the face after being told to remove his garments and put on a smock. Nelson allegedly attacked, kicked, and bit three cops as they attempted to place him in handcuffs, according to the sheriff's office.
Before being carried to a private cell, Nelson was restrained with handcuffs and had his legs shackled. Deputies placed him on the ground to remove the restraints. The sheriff's office did not specify what happened between the removal of the restraints and deputies finding Nelson had gone unresponsive.
According to the sheriff's office, when deputies were leaving Nelson's cell, they realized he wasn't breathing and was starting to turn blue. CPR was started by jail staff and continued as Nelson was being taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The sheriff’s office said deputies noticed Nelson wasn’t breathing and was beginning to turn blue as they were leaving his cell. Jail staff began performing CPR, which continued as Nelson was transported to the hospital, where he was declared dead.
In addition to the 10th Judicial Circuit investigation, the sheriff’s office is conducting its own internal investigation.
Nelson's cause of death will be determined by an autopsy performed by the Polk County Medical Examiner, and the State Attorney's Office will make the final decision about the deputies' use of force.
