An inmate housed at the Bexar County Adult Detention Center has died, with the incident adding to a string of in-custody deaths this year. Lorenzo Aleman, 48, passed away recently at approximately 5:43 p.m., and was identified by the Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office, reported KTSA. The cause and manner of Aleman's death are currently undetermined, pending the results of an autopsy.
Aleman was being held on charges of capital murder after a violent incident in a Southeast Side H-E-B parking lot led to the deaths of two individuals on a Sunday night. Shooting his girlfriend, Beatriz Guzman, who was 41, and his nephew, 31-year-old Jeronimo Ramirez, Aleman was arrested the following morning, as mentioned in a statement obtained by KSAT. According to their reporting, Aleman is the eighth inmate to die within the facility this year.
The ongoing investigation into Aleman's death is being conducted by the Castle Hills Police Department, in accordance with the Sandra Bland Act. This law mandates independent reviews of in-custody deaths. The exact circumstances surrounding Aleman's demise within the jail have not been disclosed publicly at this time.
While the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office has not released further details about the fatalities within their jail this year, the frequency of deaths at such facilities has become a point of concern. With Aleman being pronounced dead just before 6 p.m., KSAT Investigates pointed out, this trend raises questions about inmate welfare and the conditions in which they are detained. The Sheriff's Office has yet to comment on the specifics of the previous seven inmate deaths, in addition to the recent loss of Aleman.
