Man dies while in police custody

District attorney leads investigation into death of allegedly intoxicated man at Laguna Beach jail.A 25-year-old Laguna Beach man died in a Laguna Beach Police Department holding cell at around 3:50 a.m. on Jan. 6.

Matthew Francis Dunlevy was pronounced dead five hours after being placed in a holding cell at the city jail.

In a news release, department officials said that officers responded the night of Jan. 5 to a local restaurant and bar in response to a call that someone was “acting strangely.”

The Laguna police said they found Dunlevy in the bathroom at approximately 10:50 p.m. and arrested him on suspicion of public intoxication based on his demeanor and “anxiety level.”

“He was unable to care for his safety or the safety of others,” the news release stated.

Five hours later, officers conducting a routine cell inspection discovered that Dunlevy was not breathing.

He was pronounced dead after paramedics were unable to revive him.

The Orange County district attorney’s office is conducting an independent investigation into the incident at the request of police.