Arkansas State Police wrapped up the investigation of a death at the Carroll County Detention Center in early May, officially listing the cause of death as “natural.” The report detailed a history of alcoholism.
Scott William McKnight, 56, was found unresponsive in his cell at about 6 p.m. on May 2. Jailers tried to resuscitate him, and emergency responders continued those efforts. McKnight was taken to the emergency room at Mercy Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
McKnight had arrived at the detention center the previous evening, after a Eureka Springs police officer arrested him at Bunch’s Quick Chek for public intoxication and criminal trespass. McKnight had a blood alcohol level of .375 at the time of his booking.
The ASP report notes that McKnight did not complain of any health issues during his intake or thereafter. He had eaten breakfast and lunch on the day of his death, but jail staff noted that he did not touch his dinner tray. They checked on the prisoner, and began resuscitation efforts.
An autopsy performed at the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory categorized the cause of death as natural due to complications of chronic alcoholism. “Individuals with chronic alcoholism, who suddenly stop alcohol consumption, are known to be at increased risk for development of withdrawal seizures,” the report states. “In some instances, these can prove fatal.”
The autopsy report also concludes that the diagnosis comes through diagnostic exclusion rather than through a direct finding. “The gross autopsy, microscopic tissue examination, and toxicology testing do not indicate any other potential cause of death with reasonable certainty.”
ASP report does not fix any blame on Detention Center staff, but Carroll County Sheriff Jim Ross said he has taken this opportunity to revisit jail procedures. Jail standards require checking on prisoners every hour, and McKnight had communicated with jail staff through the intercom at about 4 p.m. Cell checks are recorded electronically, and the next interaction with McKnight came after he did not pick up his dinner tray.