Crime & Safety

Coroner Releases Details On Man Who Died In Sheriff's Custody

The coroner ruled the "manner of death" in the case of Raymond Lewis Johnson was homicide.

An allegedly out-of-control man who died while being taken into custody outside a Moreno Valley restaurant in October had high concentrations of illegal drugs in his system, suffered from heart disease, and was involved in a physical altercation, the coroner’s office reported today.

All of these things taken together led to his death -- which has been ruled a homicide -- according to the Riverside County coroner's office.

Raymond Lewis Johnson, 41, lost consciousness and stopped breathing as Riverside County sheriff's deputies attempted to restrain him in the drive-thru of a Burger King at 23125 Hemlock Ave. on Oct. 11.

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He was pronounced dead at Riverside County Regional Medical Center minutes later.

The use-of-force tactics deputies employed to arrest Johnson drew criticism from his family and community groups, prompting sheriff's officials to take extra steps to inform the public about the post-mortem investigation.

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Preliminary autopsy results released in November showed Johnson had high levels of PCP in his stomach and trace amounts in his blood, according to the sheriff's department.

"PCP was also located in his urine and vitreous fluid, which is indicative of the potential of steady use of the drug," according to a sheriff's statement. "In addition to the PCP, there was cocaine, marijuana and their derivatives located in his urine. Those findings indicate that those drugs were ingested earlier than the PCP."

Sheriff's officials said that while the toxicology results will be factored into the coroner's report, the official cause of death has not yet been conclusively determined.

Today the coroner reported the cause of death to be “hypertensive cardiovascular disease with other significant condition of Acute Phencyclidine (PCP) intoxication and physical altercation with law enforcement.”

The coroner also ruled that the “manner of death” was homicide.

“The term ‘homicide’ as it relates to a coroner investigation is a neutral term and does not imply any criminal intentions. It is simply defined as any death which is not an accident or suicide and where a volitional act was directed toward the decedent that leads to their death,” the coroner’s office reported.

Furthermore, the coroner reported Johnson's “mode of death” was “a physical altercation with law enforcement while under the influence of an illicit substance while suffering from hypertensive cardiovascular disease.”

According to sheriff's spokesman Lt. Joe Borja, deputies were sent to the Burger King around 6 p.m. on Oct. 11 to investigate reports of an agitated man in a car, thrashing about uncontrollably.

The first deputy to arrive attempted to make contact with the 6-foot-3, 216-pound suspect, but Johnson was unresponsive and instead began kicking the interior of his car, Borja reported.

He said the suspect attempted to start his vehicle several times without success, at which point the deputy, fearing Johnson would drive away and potentially cause a wreck, deployed his pepper spray, aiming it into Johnson's face, which momentarily stunned the suspect, who began "pulling on his steering wheel and again attempted to start the vehicle."

The deputy then used his Taser, shocking Johnson several times, without any apparent effect, Borja reported. The suspect allegedly grabbed the lawman's hand to prevent him from using the Taser again, and the two men became locked in a struggle that continued until backup deputies arrived and corralled Johnson, who reached beneath the passenger seat of his car -- raising concerns that he might be trying to get hold of a weapon, according to Borja.

A deputy struck Johnson with a baton to make him release his grip on whatever he was holding underneath the seat, Borja continued, and deputies then successfully pulled him out of the vehicle, handcuffing him and placing him on the ground.

It was at that point he stopped breathing, prompting the deputies to summon an ambulance. Borja said the suspect had abrasions but no injuries that outwardly appeared to be life-threatening. --City News Service contributed to this report.


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