Hospital staff Tased a combative man in county custody, then he died, SC sheriff says
A man in county jail custody was at a South Carolina hospital when he became combative with a deputy and hospital security used a Taser on him, according to the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office. Then he died, according to the county coroner.
Deputies arrested Ross Alan Rittacco, 42, Tuesday morning along with more than 30 others this week in a drug sting dubbed “Operation Crystal Clear,” according to the sheriff’s office. The sheriff said Rittacco complained he had shortness of breath but did not want to go to the hospital.
Later that afternoon, sheriff’s deputies did take Rittacco to the hospital in Gaffney, South Carolina, the sheriff’s office said in a press release.
But it was early Wednesday morning when trouble started and, the sheriff said, the detainee started fighting with a deputy around 1 a.m., according to the release. The deputy was not injured.
“The security officers from the hospital assisted medical staff and the detention officer in restraining the inmate, hospital security deployed a Taser on the inmate,” the sheriff’s office said.
At about 2 a.m. he became unresponsive, and died less than 30 minutes later, according to the release.
Cherokee County Coroner Dennis Fowler said in a press release, “Mr. Rittacco died at 2:25 a.m. at Cherokee Medical Center in Gaffney where he had been brought for treatment from the county detention center about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.”
The coroner said he plans to do an autopsy Thursday.
This story was originally published July 25, 2019 at 9:05 AM with the headline "Hospital staff Tased a combative man in county custody, then he died, SC sheriff says."
