This latest death comes just weeks after a mentally ill homeless man perished inside the walls of the Bexar County jail. Credit: Courtesy of Bexar County

A 36-year-old woman in custody of the Bexar County Jail has become its sixth inmate to die this year, KSAT reports.

Joanna Ginez, who was initially booked on drug charges, died on Wednesday night after suffering what officials described as a “medical episode,” the TV station reports.

“Preliminary, it appears the inmate suffered a medical episode compounded by withdrawal symptoms; however, the Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office will ultimately determine the exact cause and manner of death,” the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

Ginez was found in her cell around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday after inmates alerted guards that she was unresponsive, according to the Express-News.

The deputy who discovered Ginez initiated an emergency code and began life-saving measures. Medical staff and the San Antonio Fire Department responded. However, their efforts proved futile, and Ginez was pronounced dead at 6:47 p.m., the daily reports.

The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, as well as the Castle Hill Police Department, are investigating Ginez’s death in accordance with the Sandra Bland Act, which requires that an outside agency also look into each inmate’s in-custody death.

Two weeks ago, inmate Robert Wayne Parker died after being beaten to death in his Bexar County Jail cell.

Former Bexar County Sheriff’s Deputy Clemente Lopez Jr. was arrested last month over allegations he allowed a group of inmates to attack and kill inmate Francisco Bazan.

Those deaths come after Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar in April opened the Bexar County Jail to the Express-News for a tour in response to prior fatalities by inmates.

“We’re doing our very best to do what we need to do: hold these folks until they get a trial,” Salazar told the daily at that time. “And we are trying to do it with safety in mind. The last thing we need is the death of an inmate in custody.”

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This article appears in Jun 26 – Jul 9, 2025.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...