Manassas Journal Messenger | Inmate dies at regional jail
An inmate died after collapsing during a basketball game at the Prince William-Manassas regional jail Friday around 5:24 p.m.
Nate Junior Ford, of Brandy Station, was being held by Prince William County authorities for driving with a revoked license and failure to appear in Prince William and Fauquier counties, and additional traffic charges from Culpeper County.
An autopsy revealed underlying cardiac issues and stated that Ford, 50, died of cardiac-related causes, according to Sgt. Bill Goodman, Manassas police spokesman. Ford was 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighed 235 pounds. The autopsy revealed arterial problems, Goodman said.
Ford was playing basketball with several other inmates in an open-air recreational room within the jail. The ceilings are 25-30 feet high and covered with wire so no one can escape. The open-air area affords inmates the opportunity to experience the weather.
The preliminary investigation showed “no signs of foul play or obvious trauma,” Goodman said.
Guards and other inmates rushed to Ford’s aid, but guards and EMTs that responded were unable to revive him with CPR. He was pronounced dead at Prince William Hospital.
Ford had no history of medical issues from his two previous stays at the jail, nor did he complain of any problems that day, said Col. Glendell Hill, the jail superintendent.
Ford was housed in a minimum-medium security wing of the jail in a dormitory. A dorm houses 25 people, while a cell is designed to hold only one. In the dorms, inmates have access to as much water as they want, Hill said.
Hill called Ford a model inmate and said he had no disciplinary problems.