Tulsa County Sheriff's Office Addresses Death Of Jail Inmate

The Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office held a news conference over the death of a jail inmate Monday afternoon.

According to the medical examiner, Leo Horn, 58, died as a result of complications of remote blunt force trauma of the head. Tulsa County Sheriff Vic Regalado said at a news conference, "He succumbed to injuries that he had taken previously."

The manner of death was determined to be homicide.

During an initial investigation in June, the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office released a statement at the time saying it appeared Horn died from natural causes, however, pending a report from the medical examiner, the exact cause and manner would not be known.

Regalado said once the ME released the report, TCSO started looking into Horn's records to make sure nothing happened during his time at the jail that may have led to his death. Regalado said they found nothing.

During the news conference, Regalado said TCSO contacted several other agencies and was informed by the Tulsa Police Department that in 2010, Horn was a victim of an assault that put him on life support at the time.

Regalado said that Horn "had sustained injuries consistent with injuries listed in the medical examiner's report."

The sheriff said the case is closed as far as the sheriff's office and the jail, but said it will be handed back to TPD which will determine if charges will be filed.

"I want to make it abundantly clear, that when Mr. Horn was found unresponsive, as with anybody else, and any other death in the jail, an investigation ensued," Regalado said. "For the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office, this case is closed within the jail. However, again, that case is going to go over to the Tulsa Police Department and they will do a fine job of handling it."

Horn, a suspect in a Tulsa rape case, died in the Tulsa County Jail in June 2016.

6/13/2016 Related Story: Rape Suspect Dies In Tulsa County Jail

Tulsa Police arrested Horn last August in connection with a rape at a motel. Police said he raped a pregnant woman who had asked to borrow his phone.

Horn faced one count of first-degree rape and one count of second-degree rape in that case.

He was also charged with malicious injury to property for throwing a dinner tray and breaking a window while in jail in April.

Our partner, The Frontier, has more on this story. You can find their coverage here.