The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has taken on the case of an inmate death at Chatham County Jail, following a request from the local sheriff's office. Michael James Waller Jr., 31, of Savannah, was observed by jail staff as he ingested an unknown substance last Sunday night, setting off a series of events leading to his death.
After Waller consumed the substance around 10:30 p.m., he was segregated into a separate cell where he could be watched, yet despite these precautions, only a few hours had passed before his condition worsened, at which time he was escorted to a hospital to get the requisite care he required, however, the medical intervention fell short, as reported by the GBI's press release. Waller's death subsequently followed in the healthcare facility.
Determined to unearth the cause of Waller's fatal episode, the GBI has arranged for his body to be examined at the Crime Lab in Pooler, where an autopsy will reveal more details about the circumstances surrounding his untimely demise. This autopsy is a critical piece of the investigative puzzle, bringing forensic science into the quest for answers.
Completing the investigation will eventually lead to the compilation of a case file, as it is standard procedure; the file then is to be handed over to the District Attorney’s Office of the Eastern Judicial Circuit for further analysis and review, a move that will no doubt be closely watched by the community which has seen too many such instances where the incarcerated come to face their mortality behind bars, and it further echoes the recurrent narrative of deaths within the conservation of the state, according to the official statement from the GBI.
