Report concludes death of man in police custody was accidental, surveillance, bodycam released

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Norwich, CT - A report from the Office of the Inspector General concluded that the death of a Salem man while in police custody in Norwich was accidental.

On September 15, 2024, Norwich officers were called out to Illiano’s restaurant on West Town Road for a report of a person walking in the parking lot needing medical attention.

When officers arrived, they found Jacob Evans in a highly agitated state wearing only boxer shorts and rolling around in the leaves, prickers, and dirt.

The officers put Evan’s in handcuffs to stop his erratic movements while they waited for an ambulance.

While being transported by ambulance to Backus Hospital, Evans became unresponsive.

At the hospital, Evans was diagnosed with multiple organ failure, acute kidney injury, and septic shock along with other serious conditions.

He spent 17 days at the hospital before he died.

His urine tested positive for fentanyl, cocaine, and marijuana.

An autopsy determined his cause of death was due to substance use.

The report concluded that the officers did not use excessive and had only been attempting to help him.

The report also brought up whether Evans was even technically in police custody.

“To begin, this case poses a close question whether Jacob Evans’ death was an “in custody” death. The police did not restrain Evans to arrest him, or search him for weapons, or for any purpose other than to help him. He was never going to be taken to the police station. Nevertheless, I believe that when the officers placed handcuffs on Evans to facilitate his movement out of the vegetation, he was in their custody,” it said.