A 37-year-old man died in the Walker County jail just a few hours after being arrested for felony possession of methamphetamine, authorities said.
Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson said in a news release that Richard Nathan Parm of LaFayette was found unresponsive in his cell about 8 a.m. on Wednesday morning.
According to an arrest report, LaFayette Police Lt. Chris Reynolds saw Parm walking on Oak Street at 2 a.m. early Wednesday morning. Reynolds wrote in the report that he knew Parm from past incidents that involved narcotics and asked Parm what he was doing out so late.
Parm told Reynolds he was looking for a friend who had been arrested the night before. Reynolds asked if he could search Parm and found a bag with an unused syringe in his pocket. Parm told Reynolds that he was diabetic and that's what the syringe was for. Reynolds also found a couple of used syringes with the caps off and residue on one of them.
"Through my training and experience I know that these needles are used to inject methamphetamine into people's bodies," Reynolds wrote in the arrest report. "Mr. Parm immediately stated 'Oh man, come on don't charge me with that.' I asked Mr. Parm what I would charge him with if it was for diabetic purposes and he did not respond."
Reynolds then asked Parm when the last time he used meth was and Parm told him "a couple of hours ago," the report states, adding that Parm was then handcuffed and arrested without incident. A swab test confirmed traces of meth on the syringe, Reynolds wrote.
Wilson wrote in the report Monday that life-saving measures were attempted on Parm that Wednesday morning. Parm was transferred to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating the death, and Parm's body has been sent to Atlanta for an autopsy.
Contact Patrick Filbin at pfilbin@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6476. Follow him on Twitter @PatrickFilbin.