Inmate Found Dead in Southwest Jail Cell Identified

A Riverside County jail inmate who reportedly committed suicide in his cell was identified Wednesday as 51-year-old James Clifton of Menifee.

Clifton died Monday afternoon at the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta.

According to sheriff’s Sgt. Todd Pauling, deputies discovered Clifton unconscious in his cell and attempted to revive him without success.

Clifton was pronounced dead at the scene.

Reports from the Press Enterprise indicate Clifton hanged himself. It’s unclear why he was booked into jail.

The death was the fourth in custody this year at a Riverside County jail, according to the Press-Enterprise.

A inmate at the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside committed suicide in January; and two inmates died in March at the Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility near Banning, one who was allegedly assaulted by his cellmate and the other from an undisclosed medical emergency.

— City News Service.