Sacramento mass shooting suspect dies in jail cell, police and attorney say

BRIAN P. D. HANNON
Associated Press

California officials say a suspect who was being held on charges connected to a 2022 mass shooting in the state capital has died in his cell. The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office says the 29-year-old male inmate died at the Sacramento County Main Jail around 2:15 a.m. Saturday. Public defender Norman Dawson identified the man as Smiley Martin, his client who was awaiting trial on three felony charges stemming from an April 3, 2022, shooting in Sacramento that killed six people and wounded 12 others. The sheriff’s office says deputies were conducting a cell check and found an unresponsive inmate. The deputies and then fire department personnel attempted life-saving procedures but he was pronounced dead. The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office will determine the cause of death.