Woman dies in police custody

A woman died in custody at the Garden Grove police station Friday, hours after she was declared healthy enough to leave a hospital.

Police say Renee M. Fonte, who had been arrested for an alleged parole violation, had a heart attack.

Earlier that day, police had been called to the 9900 block of Swallow Avenue to check on Fonte, 47, who had been found sleeping in a home being fumigated, according to Lt. Dave Kivler, a Garden Grove police spokesman.

When police arrived, they learned that paramedics also called to the scene had taken Fonte to Western Medical Center Anaheim, Kivler said. When police got to the hospital, they ran a background check on Fonte and found a warrant for her arrest. She was medically cleared, and the police took her into custody.

At 3 p.m. Friday, she collapsed and was again taken to the hospital, where she was declared dead.

The Orange County district attorney’s office is investigating the death.

-- Kate Linthicum