ESCONDIDO — A 46-year-old murder suspect who had been hospitalized for two weeks since falling ill while awaiting trial at Vista Detention Facility died Thursday.
James Lawrence Pittman of Oceanside was found by his cellmate in apparent medical distress on Feb. 14, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office.
Jail medical staffers evaluated Pittman, who seemed “disoriented and confused,” after which paramedics took him to Palomar Medical Center Escondido, sheriff’s Lt. Michael Krugh said. There, Pittman was admitted to an intensive-care unit, where he remained until his death on Feb. 27.
“An autopsy conducted by the (county) Medical Examiner’s Office did not determine a preliminary cause and manner of death,” Krugh said. “The medical examiner’s investigation is ongoing.”
Pittman had been in custody since Jan. 3, 2023, in connection with the fatal shooting of a 37-year-old man the previous month at a homeless camp in Oceanside.
