SMITH COUNTY, Texas — The Smith County Sheriff's Office has announced the death of an inmate.
According to Sheriff Larry Smith, Raul Rodriguez, 61, was booked into the Smith County Jail for driving while intoxicated on November 7, 2019. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison on March 24, 2020, and was awaiting transfer to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Institutional Division.
On Sunday, Rodriguez was taken by ambulance to a Tyler hospital band was moved to the Intensive Care Unit. Just after 1:20 a.m. on Saturday, officials say Rodriguez died from an undisclosed medical issue.
Per SCSO protocol, the Texas Rangers were notified to conduct an in-custody death investigation.
It is unknown if Rodriguez's death is the same coronavirus-related death of a Smith County inmate reported by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards on Saturday.
