Inmate Found Dead in Marin County Jail Cell ID'd

By Bay City News Service:

A man found dead in his Marin County Jail cell on Friday morning was identified Monday as a suspect in a Sausalito murder who had previously threatened suicide, law enforcement officials said.

Conrad Smith, 51, of Sausalito was found dead in his cell from unspecified wounds at 1:09 a.m. when a sheriff’s deputy made a cell check, according to the Marin County Sheriff’s Office. He was alone in the cell when found.

Smith had been in custody since Dec. 11 after he was arrested in a standoff for allegedly killing his landlord in Sausalito with a crowbar, according to the sheriff’s office.

Smith’s landlord, 57-year-old David Richard Morgan, was found dead from head trauma at a home at 601 Nevada St. at about 12:30 p.m. that day, according to the sheriff’s office.

Investigators learned Smith and Morgan had been in a heated argument the day before. Police found Smith locked in the garage. Smith refused to come out for hours, telling the officers he had a gun and wanted to die by “suicide by cop,” according to police.

Police eventually persuaded him to come out and he was taken into custody.

The sheriff’s office did not elaborate on the cause of Smith’s death, saying autopsy results are expected to take 4-6 weeks.

The Sonoma County coroner’s office is investigating the cause and manner of his death and San Rafael police are investigating the circumstances.

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