08/23/2010 // West Palm Beach, FL, USA // Tara Monks // Tara Monks
Hartford, CT – A 33-year-old inmate at the Hartford Correctional Center was found by correctional officers hanged by a bed sheet in his cell on Saturday, August 21, 2010, as reported by the Hartford Courant.
James Ratliff, of Middletown, was found at approximately 11 a.m., hanging from a bed sheet tied to a vent in the cell, according to a Department of Correction press release. Correction guards tried to revive him before he was transferred to Hartford Hospital. He was pronounced dead at 11:15 a.m. Ratliff was the only inmate in the cell at the time of the hanging.
Ratliff’s body was transferred to the State Medical Examiner’s office for an autopsy.
Ratlif was being held on a $227,600 bail for assault weapons charges that he had pleaded guilty to, according to Judicial Department records. His next trial date was scheduled for September 16.
He was arrested in November 2009 after an officer found a Storm-Ruger 7.62-calibur assault rifle and several magazines in his car. He has been incarcerated since.
He was previously arrested by Middletown police in March 2009 after an officer tried to stop him for speeding, which led to a police chase. It was the third time in less than several months that Ratliff led police on a pursuit. All his motor-vehicle charges were still pending.
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