10 El Paso County deputies placed on leave after inmate death at CJC

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Ten deputies with the El Paso County Sheriff's Office are on paid administrative leave following the death of an inmate at the county jail.

The El Paso County Sheriff's Office says this happened Friday night in the medical section of the jail. Despite lifesaving measures by medical staff the inmate died.

The inmate's name or cause of death has not been released at this time.

KRDO has reached out to the county coroner's office for more information and is waiting to hear back.

Jackie Kirby a spokesperson for EPCSO says, "Force was used during this incident and therefore ten deputies who all were involved in some way, were all placed on admin leave just as you would see in an officer involved shooting. It's the same protocol."

That protocol, however, is something new for the jail. The sheriff's office says all of the deputies involved in the incident were placed on leave, per department policy. The extent of the deputies' involvement in the inmate's death is not clear at this time.

Kirby also saying just because those deputies were placed on leave, doesn't mean they did anything wrong during the incident. "Being placed on admin leave is no indication necessarily of any wrongdoing," Kirby says.

The death is now being investigated by the Colorado Springs Police Department.