WA- King County Jail inmate dead from apparent suicide

7-3-2009 Washington:

An inmate was found dead early Friday in the King County Jail, apparently after hanging himself in his cell, according to county officials.

The inmate, a 36-year-old man booked Oct. 29 on suspicion of first-degree rape, was discovered at 2:26 a.m, according to officials. The King County Medical Examiner's Office has not yet identified him or the cause of death.

"It appears to be a suicide at this point, but the Medical Examiner still has to do an autopsy and that won't be completed until Monday," said Maj. William Hayes, a county corrections spokesman.

Corrections officers, who discovered him during a routine security check, attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation, Hayes said.

The inmate's death will be investigated, which is standard for all in-custody deaths. He was the second inmate to die in custody in a month. On June 4, Joseph Demmert, who was booked on a warrant for failing to appear in Municipal Court, died at Harborview Medical Center. The Medical Examiner's Office has not yet determined his cause of death.

"Obviously, it's not good for the person who passes and it traumatizes those who have to come upon it and have to deal with these things when they occur," Hayes said.

Earlier this year, King County agreed in a settlement with the U.S. Justice Department to address several civil rights issues uncovered by an investigation that found lacking medical care, poor suicide prevention measures and insufficient safeguards against inmate abuse. The Justice Department is still monitoring the jail's progress.

"They are still here and I'm sure they'll be talking to us about this case," Hayes said. ..Source.. by SCOTT GUTIERREZ, SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF



Inmate who was found dead was charged in Wallingford rape

7-5-2009 Washington:

A man accused of raping a Wallingford woman after he allegedly broke into her home last October was found dead Friday in the King County Jail, apparently after hanging himself, according to law enforcement sources.

Police sources identified the inmate Saturday as Franklin D. Antill, also known as Sankarandi Skanda, 36, who was charged with first-degree rape, robbery and burglary, and was facing a lengthy prison term.

Skanda was slated to testify Monday at his trial in King County Superior Court. Prosecutors, who'd been frustrated by his earlier behavior while acting as his own attorney, would have had a chance to grill him on claims he had made against the victim.

The King County Medical Examiner's Office has not yet identified him or the cause of death.

"It appears to be a suicide at this point, but the Medical Examiner still has to do an autopsy and that won't be completed until Monday," said Maj. William Hayes, a county corrections spokesman, on Friday.

Corrections officers, who discovered him at 2:26 a.m. during a routine security check, attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation, Hayes said.

The inmate's death will be investigated, which is standard for all in-custody deaths.

Skanda was accused of breaking into the woman's home on Oct. 20. He allegedly held a knife to her throat, demanded money and sexually assaulted her while her two children were asleep. Her husband had just left for the store.

Skanda chose to represent himself at trial instead of getting an attorney, which enabled him to question the victim on the witness stand. Skanda raised unsupported allegations against the woman, 35, claiming they'd had an affair and that she wanted him to kill her husband.

The woman told jurors that when Skanda got inside her home, he gripped her from behind and held a knife to her throat while demanding money.

She said she offered him what cash she had and more -- her wedding and engagement rings, anything of value in the home -- if he would leave before her husband returned from a nearby store. Skanda, she said, wasn't satiated by her valuables and sexually assaulted her at knifepoint as her children slept nearby.

During his questioning last month, Skanda allegedly violated pre-trial orders against raising unsupported allegations against the woman and her husband. Skanda continued with allegedly slanderous questions, and Senior Deputy Prosecutor Julie Kays objected, saying it was "the most offensive line of questioning I've heard in 10 years of practice."

Skanda described himself as a "religious doctor" who was attempting to found an Ecstasy-fueled "Temple of Love" church. His changed his name from Frank Antill when he converted to Hinduism while serving a prison term after being implicated in a similar assault in Idaho. Skanda was registered in jail records as Antill.

According to prosecutors, Idaho authorities believe that Antill kidnapped and raped a woman in 2000 after escaping from prison, where he was serving time for a burglary conviction. He was released from prison last May after pleading guilty to an escape charge.

If convicted, Skanda would have been subject to an indefinite term of confinement under state sex offender sentencing rules.

Skanda was the second inmate to die in custody in a month. On June 4, Joseph Demmert, who was booked on a warrant for failing to appear in Municipal Court, died at Harborview Medical Center.

Earlier this year, King County agreed in a settlement with the U.S. Justice Department to address several civil rights issues uncovered by an investigation that found lacking medical care, poor suicide prevention measures and insufficient safeguards against inmate abuse. The Justice Department is still monitoring the jail's progress.

"They are still here and I'm sure they'll be talking to us about this case," said Hayes, the jail spokesman. ..Source.. by CASEY MCNERTHNEY and SCOTT GUTIERREZ
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF