BOZEMAN — On Wednesday, the Gallatin County Attorney’s Office held a coroner’s inquest, which determines if someone should be charged with a crime in a person’s death, if that person dies while in custody. The jury found that Himmelspach did not die by criminal means.
“An inquest is a need to preserve all evidence to make a determination of the cause of death and whether the death was by criminal or non-criminal means. This inquest is not a trial,” said Al Jenkins, the coroner for Park County.
The inquest was for Jennifer Himmelspach, an inmate at Gallatin County Detention Center who lost consciousness on July 21st, 2021, just before she was set to be released from custody.
“Detention center staff and later medical personnel attempted to perform life-saving measures. She was then transported to the Bozeman Deaconess Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 4:51p.m.,” said Gallatin County Attorney Audrey Cromwell.
Pictured: Gallatin County Attorney Audrey Cromwell (photo credit: MTN News)
Cromwell says an autopsy and toxicology report were performed on Himmelspach, which showed that her death was accidental.
“The toxicology report indicated that Ms. Himmelspach had a lethal amount of methamphetamine in her system when she passed away,” said Cromwell.
During the inquest, Cromwell showed a timeline of events and several videos of Himmelspach in custody the day she died. “She was brought back to her cell to process her release at 2:20, you can see on our timeline there,” said Cromwell, pointing to the timeline.
Several witnesses testified as part of the inquest, including a former detention officer, Becker Cuelho.
WATCH: Coroner's inquest for Jennifer Himmelspach
“She was fairly erratic, difficult to book. She couldn’t focus, as you guys saw; it was a difficult for her to sit up in a wheelchair,” said Cuelho.
Another witness with Stewart Neal, who was a booking officer at the Gallatin Country Detention Center the day Himmelspach died.
“In a jail environment, people regularly come in in various stages of crisis and intoxication,” said Neal. “So, while, you know, her behavior wasn’t necessarily normal, it wasn’t out of the realm of normal in a booking environment.”
The inquest concluded with jurors deliberating Himmelspach’s death and deciding if it involved a crime.
