County Jail Inmate Dies After Deputy Applies Carotid Hold

An inmate at the County Jail downtown died Thursday night after an altercation with sheriff’s deputies during which one of the officers applied a carotid hold, which is designed to temporarily stop the flow of blood to the brain.

Homicide detectives said that Albert Manuel Varela, 28, of Lakeside was being escorted from one room to another in the jail when he tried to punch the deputies who were accompanying him.

Five deputies attempted to control the 6-foot tall, 200-pound Varela.

To subdue Varela, one deputy used a carotid hold, which involves applying pressure to the sides of the throat.

Varela passed out and fell to the floor, taking the deputies with him. They found that Varela had stopped breathing.

The deputies tried to resuscitate Varela, but were unsuccessful, and he was taken to UC San Diego Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The cause of death had not been determined, the coroner’s office said. An autopsy is being performed. Unlike the controversial chokehold, the carotid hold does not involve cutting off the victim’s air supply. Some people have criticized the use of the carotid hold, but San Diego County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Lt. Alan Fulmer defended the method.

“There’s pro and con in both directions but I think it’s been shown that the safest way and most humane way to subdue someone who gets combative is the carotid hold,” Fulmer said. “If the hold had been found to not be safe, I can guarantee you we would not be using it.”

Sgt. Rich Hendrickson said that the hold is usually a last resort after other restraining measures have been tried.

“It’s something you graduate to after using lesser forms of restraint,” Hendrickson said. “Most people are reluctant to use it unless you absolutely have to. But you use what force is necessary.”

Varela had been arrested Thursday afternoon for willfully disobeying a court order, a misdemeanor.