Rowlett police say a 45-year-old woman arrested Dec. 30 died after becoming non-responsive in custody.
According to police, Sandra E. Otten was booked into the Rowlett Jail at about 3:40 a.m. on the morning of Dec. 30 on suspicion of drunken driving.
She was transported to Lake Point Medical Center for a mandatory blood draw and then taken back to jail, police said.
Otten was checked by jail staff at 11:45 a.m. and 2 p.m. and both times officials said she was found to be breathing normally and snoring, but unable to be awakened. Her pulse was checked and nothing appeared out of the ordinary, police said in a statement Wednesday.
At about 2:15 p.m., detention staff tried to wake her again and noticed she wasn't making any sounds. Emergency medical personnel were called and she was transported back to Lake Point Medical Center where she was treated by hospital staff.
At 10:50 p.m. Otten was pronounced dead.
Police suspect drugs ingested prior to arrest led to the woman's death, though an investigation is under way to determine the woman's official cause of death.
