An inmate who was found dead Sunday morning at the Clark County Jail has been identified.
Dylan Matthew Elia, 38, of Vancouver was the man who died in custody, according to a news release from the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office. The cause and manner of Elia’s death will be determined after receiving results of further testing.
Elia was discovered unresponsive in the booking detox area by deputies and medical staff at 11:02 a.m., according to a Clark County Sheriff’s Office news release.
“Personnel immediately began performing life saving measures and requested emergency medical assistance,” the release says.
Vancouver Fire Department medics responded to the jail and pronounced him dead at 11:09 a.m., according to the sheriff’s office.
Clark County Major Crimes Unit, including the sheriff’s office, is conducting an investigation into the incident.
The sheriff’s office treats inmate deaths like “a crime scene” as it would other deaths in the community, Sgt. Brent Waddell said. He added that none of the investigators are deputies who work in the jail.
Court records say Elia was arrested at 3:32 p.m. Thursday in the 200 block of East 39th Street.
According to the arrest report, Vancouver police Officer Douglas Keldsen pulled over a 1983 Nissan pickup truck near East 39th and Main streets because it did not have a front license plate. The officer requested the usual documents from the driver, but Elia gave his name to the officer and said his driver’s license was suspended.
When the officer ran Elia’s and the truck’s information through a database, he learned the rear license plate on the vehicle was stolen, according to the report. Elia and a passenger both had arrest warrants, the report says.
Elia “was left in the custody of the CCSO Jail,” the report says.
On the jail’s booking sheet, deputies did not note that Elia had any observable health or mental health problems, or gave any indication he had recently ingested drugs, among a list of 13 routine questions.
Elia appeared in Clark County District Court on Friday and pleaded guilty to a single count of driving with a suspended license in the third degree. Prosecutors dismissed two identical charges in return for the plea, court records show.
The plea agreement called for Elia to spend two days in jail followed by a probation period of two years. He returned to the jail after the hearing.
A handwritten note on the pretrial agreement affidavit says Elia had seven prior cases involving driving with a suspended license. That’s the majority of Elia’s criminal record. He had other cases involving an attempt to run from police, possession of a stolen vehicle and possession of methamphetamine.
The drug possession case happened in 2008. Elia was also charged with driving with a suspended or revoked license at that time. He pleaded guilty to both charges and was sentenced to about a year in jail, court records say.
Elia’s sister — Amanda Isaak, 31, of Port Hadlock — said she and her brother had been estranged in recent years. She remembers him, however, as charismatic, free-spirited, loving and compassionate.
“Any positive adjective you could think of, that was Dylan,” Isaak said. “He was just fighting a battle with depression and addiction that he apparently lost.”
Isaak said she received a call around 3 a.m. Monday from Elia’s ex-wife about his death. She said she was, and remains, in shock.
“I just don’t understand why, maybe, there was not more checking on him,” Isaak said. “How did it go so long without anyone knowing that he was dead?”
Isaak said she plans to contact authorities in an attempt to gather more details about the circumstances of her brother’s death.
“He was a wonderful, caring brother,” Isaak said. “All of us are sad to see this be the ending of such a beautiful life.”
