GBI to investigate case of Columbus man who died in police custody at hospital
Columbus Police Chief Freddie Blackmon asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Monday to review the death of a man that occurred while in police custody, according to a news release.
Police said they were called to a shooting about 9:30 p.m. Sunday. Jerrel Ellis had fired a gun repeatedly inside a home before forcing his way into a neighboring residence, where the occupant held him at gunpoint until police arrived, authorities said.
Medics were summoned to the 5000 block of Aaron Lane to check on Ellis and decided to take him to Piedmont Columbus Regional for further examination.
Ellis later died at the hospital while in police custody. He was in a holding room at the hospital when he became unresponsive, investigators said. The officer guarding him alerted the medical staff, who revived Ellis, investigators said.
But then Ellis lost consciousness again and died, officers said.
Ellis, who lived at the Aaron Lane address where he fired a gun, was pronounced dead by an emergency room physician at 12:24 a.m. Monday, said Muscogee County Coroner Buddy Bryan. He was 30 years old, Bryan said.
The body is being sent to a state crime lab for an autopsy to determine the cause of death, the coroner said.
It’s standard procedure for the GBI to investigate deaths in police custody.
The Columbus Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards, the internal affairs unit, also will investigate, police said.
This story was originally published February 8, 2021 at 10:13 PM.