VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The death of a Virginia man in jail has been ruled a homicide, while the officers involved no longer work for the local sheriff’s office, authorities said Friday.
News outlets in southeastern Virginia are reporting that Rolin Hill, 34, died at a hospital just days after being held at the Virginia Beach jail in June.
Hill was arrested on charges of trespassing, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct, the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office said in a statement at the time. The office said Hill was denied bond and was admitted to the facility, where he became uncooperative and combative.
Hill was restrained before suffering a medical emergency and being taken to the hospital, the sheriff’s office said in June. Virginia Beach Sheriff Rocky Holcomb said his office was investigating, but also asked the Virginia State Police to conduct an independent investigation.
Donna Price, a spokesperson for the Tidewater Medical Examiner’s Office, told The Virginian-Pilot on Friday that Hill died of “positional and mechanical asphyxia due to restraint with neck and trunk compression.”
Holcomb said in a statement Friday that, based on updates from the Virginia State Police, the officers involved were no longer employed by the sheriff’s office.
“We remain committed to fairness and transparency, which is why I immediately requested an independent investigation by VSP after being made aware of what happened on June 4,” Holcomb said. “Our hearts continue to go out to Mr. Hill’s family at this difficult time.”
State police and the Virginia Beach prosecutor’s office told the Pilot that their investigation into Hill’s death is ongoing.
“Once VSP submits their report, we will review it thoroughly,” Macie Allen, spokesperson for the Commonwealth Attorney Office, said in a statement.
WAVY-TV reported this in June that the Virginia Beach chapter of the NAACP had raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding Hill’s death.
The Pilot reported this on Friday it had displayed Hill’s obituarystating that he was an Eagle Scout who loved surfing, skateboarding and hanging out with his family. It also stated that “mental health is still a major problem in America,” and requested that all donations go to mental health foundations.