PORT ANGELES — An inmate hung herself in the Clallam County jail this weekend.
Amy Specht, 42, of Port Angeles was found by corrections deputies at about 9:20 a.m. Saturday hanging from a bed sheet fashioned as a noose and draped over her cell door in Q Tank in the Clallam County jail during a routine cell check, said Chief Deputy Brian King in a news release issued Sunday.
Deputies moved her to the floor, began cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and used an automated external defibrillator (AED) while assisted by a jail nurse, King said.
Medics with the Port Angeles Fire Department continued lifesaving measures.
All measures taken were unsuccessful, King said.
The investigation into the suicide is being led by Port Angeles Police Department detectives with assistance from the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB).
Specht was arrested by sheriff’s deputies on Aug. 13 on outstanding arrest warrants for forgery and third-degree theft, King said. She was charged with identity theft and remained in jail on $10,000 bail.
The suicide was captured on the jail’s security camera system, King said.
Upon reviewing the video footage, investigators saw Specht leaving her cell at about 9 a.m. with the bed sheet wrapped around her neck. In the footage, King said, Specht is seen draping her bedsheet over her cell door while standing on a chair in the dayroom before hanging herself.
At the time of hanging, Q Tank was occupied by four other female inmates including Specht’s cell mate. Neither the jail staff nor the four inmates housed with Specht were aware she had any suicidal ideation, King said.
