Santa Maria man hospitalized while in custody identified and cause of death ruled accidental

SANTA MARIA, Calif. – An inmate who was hospitalized while in custody and later died on Sep. 17, 2024, has been identified as 40-year-old Antonio Alvarado Orozco of Santa Maria and his death has been ruled an accident.

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office Coroner's Bureau determined Orozco's death to have been a result of complications from blunt force craniocerebral trauma caused by a fall from standing height as a result of a seizure.

An investigation of the incident was also conducted and video from the Northern Branch Jail shows Orozco suffering a seizure and falling unassisted and unprotected from two different angles detailed the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office.

Orozco temporarily regained consciousness after emergency surgery, but his condition declined and he eventually died shared the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office.