This month, a woman grappling with fentanyl addiction passed away at the Harford County Detention Center. She had been deemed a "danger to self + community" and was held without bail following a home-invasion burglary charge, The Baltimore Banner reports. Brittani Ugrotzi died May 7 after four days in jail. It was the first known death since a Baltimore Banner investigation in February found an abnormally high suicide rate at the Harford County jail. Ugrotzi’s boyfriend, relaying information the woman’s mother learned from detectives, said she was on “suicide watch” when she died. The Harford County Sheriff’s Office did not comment on whether she was on suicide watch, but court paperwork describes her as a danger to herself and identifies a mental health condition. The sheriff’s office has not made any public statements about the death or shared details but Cristie Hopkins, the agency’s spokesperson, said there is “no information or evidence to suggest that suicide or foul play contributed.”
Hopkins said Ugrotzi’s death is “currently under review by law enforcement, corrections, and the contracted medical services provider,” Wellpath, and that the sheriff’s office would provide details after the medical examiner completes an autopsy. When asked why the agency hasn’t issued a press release despite the death occurring weeks ago, Hopkins said those releases come “at a time that is appropriate for that individual case.”
But previous deaths were made public by the sheriff within days, including deaths by hanging but also deaths caused by medical issues. Kyle Baker, Ugrotzi’s boyfriend, criticized the sheriff’s office for not sharing information with him despite his name being listed as her partner in court records and questioned whether it could have done more to prevent her death. “Lots of people go to jail detoxing, but you don’t go to jail to die within three days,” Baker said. “That’s not how it works.”