SLO County jail inmate dies of cancer in custody months after arrest
A San Luis Obispo County Jail inmate died from cancer Sunday at a hospice facility in Fresno County.
Grover Beach resident Brett Douglass was arrested in March after San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office deputies allegedly found narcotics and firearms in his home.
Douglass, 46, was diagnosed with cancer prior to being arrested, the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release, and received treatment Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center in San Luis Obispo while in custody.
The Sheriff’s Office sought permission to release Douglass from custody “pending his terminal status,” the release said.
However, approval of compassionate release had not been granted “based on the seriousness of his criminal history, which included charges of a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a machine gun,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
In June, about three months after Douglass’ arrest, he was transferred to the Grand Villa Congregate Living Health Facility in Clovis, where he died, according to the release.
Because Douglass was awaiting trial at San Luis Obispo Superior Court, his death is classified as happening in-custody, the Sheriff’s Office said.
The Sheriff’s Office said Douglass was able to spend time with his family before his death. His next of kin have been notified.
Grover Beach man arrested
On March 16, the Sheriff’s Office’s Special Operations Unit served a search warrant at a residence in the 1100 block of Grand Avenue, the agency said at the time.
At the property, which was less than 500 feet from Grover Beach Elementary School, the Sheriff’s Office allegedly discovered methamphetamine and fentanyl, as well as two Glock-style handguns, an Uzi fully automatic machine gun and a 12-gauge shotgun.
Douglass and Jacquelyn Douglass, 56, were arrested on suspicion of several drug- and weapon-related charges, including being a felon in possession of a firearm, possessing drugs while armed and purchasing or possessing a controlled substance for sale.
In 2014, Brett Douglass was arrested on suspicion burglarizing the home of an elderly couple as they slept.
