An inmate in a Jefferson County jail was found dead in her cell Saturday morning, authorities said.
Rebecca Esterline-Brixey, 45, was found unresponsive by jail staff at the W.C. “Dub” Brassell Adult Detention Center at about 8 a.m., according to a statement by the Jefferson County Sheriff’s office. Paramedics who arrived on the scene were unable to revive her, authorities said.
Brixey was arrested in late November on a misdemeanor charge of public intoxication, the news release stated.
According to Major Lafayette Woods, Jr., operations commander for the sheriff’s office, the cause of Brixey’s death was not immediately apparent and an investigation by the office’s Criminal Investigation Division is underway. The inmate’s body will be sent to the State Crime Laboratory for an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of her death.