Inmate Starts Fires in Sonoma Co. Jail: Deputies

SONOMA COUNTY, CA – Five inmates and 16 Sonoma County Jail staff members were treated at hospitals for smoke inhalation after an inmate started a fire in the jail this morning, county sheriff's officials said.

Bernabe Martinez Ramirez, 27, was acting agitated and tying bed sheets on door handles around 9 a.m. to prevent deputies from entering a day room of the jail's special module for inmates segregated from the general population, sheriff's Sgt. Spencer Crum said.

Ramirez also broke a manual pencil sharpener off of a wall, placed it in a sock, swung it around as a weapon and poured liquid soap on the floor to make it slippery for entering deputies, Crum said.

A Crisis Negotiation Team responded and tried for 40 minutes to calm Ramirez down. Ramirez used an electrical outlet to spark a fire with toilet paper and fed the flames with bed sheets, clothing and wooden cabinetry to create a larger, smokier fire, Crum said.

A sprinkler system was activated, and a Special Response Team comprised of 15 to 20 deputies forced their way into the day room and found Ramirez in the smoke and took him into custody. The tactical team used fire extinguishers to help put out the fire, according to Crum.

Ramirez and the other inmates in the male special module were evacuated to other secure areas of the jail, and Ramirez was taken to a hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation, Crum said.

Four other inmates and 16 correctional staff members also went to hospitals for treatment of smoke inhalation. All but one employee have since been cleared from the hospital, Crum said.
Ramirez has been in the jail since June 2, 2017, on felony charges of hit-and-run, obstructing an officer and trying to remove an officer's weapon.

Ramirez also faces an attempted murder charge for allegedly stabbing another inmate in February, Crum said. He is scheduled to appear in court
Thursday.

Sheriff's detectives and the Santa Rosa Fire Department are investigating the jail fire, and Ramirez also could face arson charges, Crum said.

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PREVIOUS: MONDAY, NOV. 5., 1:05 p.m.

A Sonoma County inmate this morning, "intent on causing a disturbance at the jail," set two fires in a common-space area at the Santa Rosa facility that sent a least five prisoners in the hospital for smoke-inhalation injuries, according to authorities.

At about 10 a.m. in the jail's "Male Special Module," a housing unit designed for inmates segregated for varying reasons from the general population, an individual, whose name was not released, spread soap on the floor and started two small fires which created smoke and activated fire alarms, the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office aid today.

The jail's sprinkler system extinguished the blazes, and no significant injuries were reported, the agency said.

Inmates in the module safely were evacuated to nearby housing units, with the approximately five taken to local hospitals for treatment, deputies said.

The Santa Rosa Fire Department responded and assisted with the cleanup and investigation.

The fire interrupted a jury's return of a verdict in a sexual assault trial involving inmate Timothy Marble. Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Dana Simonds instructed the jury to return to court at 1:30 p.m. to render its verdict. (Previous coverage: Napa Man's Trial Begins: Accused Of Sex Assault, Drugging Girl.)

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--Images via Sonoma Co. Sheriff/Bay City News contributed to this report