Authorities say the death of an inmate Thursday at a state prison in Lassen County is being investigated as a homicide after he was found unconscious in his cell, prison officials said.
Guards found Hector Hernandez unconscious at 12:34 a.m. while completing rounds at High Desert State Prison in Susanville. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation did not say in a news release how Hernandez died and a coroner’s report on his death was pending.
State prison staff provided aid to Hernandez before he was sent to the prison triage room. At 1:02 a.m., Hernandez was pronounced dead by medical staff outside the jail, CDCR said.
Hernandez, 33, was serving a life sentence with the possibility of parole for two counts of first-degree murder and use of a firearm after a recent conviction in Los Angeles County. He had been at the Northern California facility since April 19, CDCR said.
He shared a cell with Jonathan Gonzalez, who was also received by CDCR from Los Angeles County. Gonzalez did not appear on CDCR’s inmate locator Friday, but officials said he was moved to restricted housing while the investigation took place.
Gonzalez, 36, is serving a 28-year sentence that began in 2016 for attempted robbery, extortion with violence, witness intimidation and other offenses. While in prison, Gonzalez was found in possession of a deadly weapon and convicted of a second assault, according to CDCR officials.
The cell the men shared remains “locked” and not being used by other inmates while the Lassen County Prosecutor’s Office investigates the death.
