SLED to investigate Berkeley County inmate death

BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – An inmate at the Hill-Finklea Detention Center has died after they were found unresponsive in a cell.

The Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office said Monday that detention deputies were conducting their checks when they found an inmate experiencing an unknown medical event around 8:30 a.m., rendering the inmate unresponsive.

Detention deputies and medical staff attempted life-saving measures; however, the sheriff’s office said the inmate was “declared deceased.”

Officials said the inmate was being housed alone in a single cell.

The Berkeley County Coroner’s Office identified the inmate as 65-year-old William Long of Ladson. Long’s cause and manner of death are pending an autopsy and toxicology testing.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division will investigate the case.