Howard Co. Inmate Attempts Suicide

Corrections officers stop hanging attempt

Officials in Howard County say an inmate at the county's Detention Center in Jessup attempted suicide Saturday afternoon.

Investigators say that an officer in the center's "E" block heard a noise and saw 22-year-old Demetrius Hunt hanging from a sheet that had been tied to an upper level railing. The officer managed to hold Hunt in the air while three other officers cut him down. Hunt was later transported to Howard County General Hospital, where he was determined to have merely a non-life threatening neck contusion. Hunt was expected to be released shortly.

Officials say that Hunt, who was sentenced to 18 months at the center for first-degree assault this past July, had a history of disruptive behavior and was being held in administrative segregation at the time of the latest incident.

Investigators believe that Hunt hid the sheet before retrieving it while on a recreational break. Investigators say that Hunt then tied the sheet to the bottom bar of the railing on the upper level cell tier and the other end around his neck before sliding off the upper level walkway.

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