An inmate in the Leflore County Jail was found dead in his cell early this morning after an apparent suicide, according to Sheriff Ricky Banks.
Colon Vaughn, 47, who had lived with his mother at the Mayberry Trailer Park, Lot No. 6, was found by a guard hanging from a noose made from a torn bed sheet around 6 a.m., the sheriff said.
Banks said this is the first apparent suicide he can remember happening in the county jail.
The case is being investigated by both the Greenwood Police Department — which arrested Vaughn on July 11 for DUI and aggravated domestic violence against his mother — and by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.
Vaughn’s body was taken to the state crime lab in Jackson for an autopsy.
Following his arrest on July 11, Vaughn was brought to the jail and “was acting like he had some mental problems,” Banks said.
Vaughn was released on his own recognizance on July 13, and “that same day, papers were made out on him for a hearing to the state hospital,” Banks said.
Following a hearing held July 23, Vaughn was taken to the Mississippi State Hospital at Whitfield nfor a mental examination. Meanwhile, Greenwood police still had the DUI and aggravated domestic violence charges on him.
Greenwood police officers picked Vaughn up Aug. 9 at Whitfield and returned him to the Leflore County Jail.
This morning, a guard — one of five on duty — checked on Vaughn around 4:30 a.m. and told Banks later there was nothing wrong with Vaughn.
When Vaughn was found hanging at 6 a.m., guards immediately contacted MedStat.
At no time did Vaughn have a pulse, Banks said.
Leflore County Coroner Debra Sanders was contacted, and Vaughn was pronounced dead at the scene.
• Contact Bob Darden at 581-7239 or bdarden@gwcommonwealth.com.
