A 34-year-old man arrested on suspicion of felony domestic assault was found unresponsive inside the Stearns County Jail early Saturday morning, September 12, less than a day after he was booked, and later died. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is now investigating the death of Isiah Ero-Phillips after he was found unresponsive at the St. Cloud facility.
Booked Friday Morning, Dead by Saturday
St. Cloud police arrested Ero-Phillips on suspicion of felony domestic assault, and he was booked into the Stearns County Jail on Friday, September 11, at about 9:05 a.m., according to KNSI. The Stearns County Sheriff's Office reported that Ero-Phillips was heavily intoxicated at the time he was booked. He had been inside the jail for less than a day when jail staff found him unresponsive during a routine well-being check at about 3:49 a.m. on September 12.
According to the sheriff's office, jail staff found the 34-year-old having a medical emergency and immediately began life-saving measures. Mayo ambulance crews and St. Cloud Fire/Rescue arrived and continued those efforts, but ambulance staff ultimately pronounced Ero-Phillips dead.
State Investigators Now Involved
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating the death of the man found unresponsive in his cell, a step the Stearns County Sheriff's Office described as routine in cases like this. The Midwest Medical Examiner's Office is conducting an autopsy to determine how Ero-Phillips died, though results have not yet been released.
The Stearns County Sheriff's Office said BCA involvement is routine in cases like this. In late August, an inmate died at the Itasca County Jail, and officials there said the death appeared to result from natural causes while the official cause remained under investigation by the Minnesota BCA. In a separate 2023 case, the agency investigated the death of 60-year-old Dennis Eugene Kipp, who jail personnel found deceased in an apparent hanging at the Lac qui Parle County Jail after he had been booked there.
What Remains Unknown
No cause or manner of death has been made public in Ero-Phillips's case, and the BCA has not released findings on what led to the medical emergency inside his cell. It is also not yet known whether the investigation will result in any charges. The Stearns County Sheriff's Office has not provided additional detail beyond confirming the intoxication finding at booking, and no statements from Ero-Phillips's family or legal representatives have been made public as the inquiry continues.
