Sheriff’s Office: Antioch Man Charged With 8 Felony Counts of Child Molestation Hangs Himself

by ECT Jun 12, 2018

written by ECT Jun 12, 2018

At approximately 7:43 Tuesday morning, a Deputy Sheriff at the Martinez Detention Facility found an inmate who had hung himself in the shower.

The inmate was unresponsive. Deputies called for medical staff at the facility and began CPR.

An ambulance and the fire department also responded to MDF. The inmate was later pronounced deceased at the scene.

Update — The inmate has been identified as 52-year-old Phillip Andrew Jacobson of Antioch. He was booked into jail on July 11, 2017 by the Antioch Police Department. He was being held on eight felony counts of child molestation. His bail was set at $4,150,000.

This is the second hanging in two weeks. On June 4, the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office reported that while conducting a routine room check at the West County Detention Facility, deputies noticed an inmate hanging from the top bunk with a bed sheet around her neck. The inmate is identified as 74-year-old Linda Thomas of Washington. She was recently convicted of first degree murder.

The in-custody death protocol was initiated. Investigators from the Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff and the District Attorney’s Office are conducting an investigation into the death.