An Oklahoma County jail inmate accused of pistol-whipping a woman for her car outside a casino has died.
Everett D. Edwards, 58, was pronounced deceased at a hospital at 4:48 p.m. Thursday, July 3, the jail reported in a news release. He had been found to be unresponsive in his cell during a medical check an hour before.
The jail has now had eight inmate deaths in 2025, more than the total for all of last year. The seventh death this year came May 12 when a convicted murderer hanged himself.
A yearlong investigation by The Oklahoman in 2023 found that the aging facility had become one of the deadliest jails in the nation since a trust took over its operations on July 1, 2020.
A multicounty grand jury in 2023 recommended putting the Oklahoma County sheriff back in charge. The trust agreed in June to undergo a performance review that will include an evaluation of the merits of continuing to oversee the jail.
The jail said in the news release that the circumstances surrounding Edwards’ death are under investigation. “All deaths are investigated as homicides until a final determination is made by the state medical examiner’s office,” the jail said.
Edwards had medical issues. Police reported he was in a wheelchair when he first approached the robbery victim outside the casino at Remington Park in Oklahoma City early June 27. The victim was bleeding profusely from her head after being struck, police said.
Police identified Edwards as a suspect from his casino players card after the car was stolen, according to a court affidavit.
Edwards had been in jail since June 27, according to the news release. His bail was set at $110,000 on the robbery accusation. He had not been charged yet over the incident.
He was awaiting trial on two 2023 charges of possession of a firearm after a felony conviction.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Man dies after found unresponsive in OK County jail; 8th death in 2025