By Jon Johnson
GRAHAM COUNTY – The Graham County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death of inmate Donna Cobb, 46, of Bylas, who was found unresponsive on her bunk Thursday morning.
Cobb was originally booked into the jail on DUI-related charges. The case against her was initiated on Tuesday, Sept. 24.
According to Graham County Sheriff P.J. Allred, Cobb was initially placed in the general population but was later moved to a suicide watch cell at her request on Wednesday, Sept. 25. However, when staff began to start breakfast rounds at about 5:40 a.m on Thursday, Sept. 26, Cobb was found unresponsive in her bunk.
Sheriff Allred said there were no outward signs of trauma and that the cause of death was unknown at this time. The Pima County Office of Medical Examiner will perform an autopsy to attempt to find out the cause of death.
“There’s not a mark on this girl anywhere,” Allred said. “Physically, nothing, zero, zilch. I mean, there’s not a mark anyplace . . . I have no idea what happened at this point. The medical examiner is gonna do an autopsy on her, and hopefully, the medical examiner will be able to clear some stuff up for us, as to why, or what, but I mean there’s nothing tied around her neck, there was nothing. Like I said, there was nothing. She did not hurt herself, or nobody else hurt her, at all and she was in a cell by herself.”
Cobb has a history of drug use and her recent arrest was for driving while under the influence of drugs.
“Whatever shut her down had to come from the inside,” Allred said.
The incident remains under investigation.
