Autopsy released for Raleigh man who died in Wake jail after deadly car crash
A man who died in the Wake County Detention Center a week after entering the jail following a deadly car crash likely died of sepsis and pneumonia, a newly released autopsy report states.
William David Barber, 65, died Jan 10 in the hospital, after detention officers found him having a medical emergency in his cell on the morning of Jan. 9. Sepsis is an extreme reaction by the body’s immune system to an illness or injury.
Barber was initially taken to the hospital, where he tested positive for cocaine, after a car crash on Dec. 28 in which two people died, the autopsy report stated.
Surgery was recommended, which he rejected, according to the report, which The News and Observer requested from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
Barber was arrested when he left the hospital Jan 3 on charges of driving with a revoked license and larceny of a vehicle, according to Wake County arrest records.
He allegedly had been driving a stolen pickup truck over 80 mph in a 25 mph zone when he rear-ended a car, fatally injuring two people, on South Blount Street near East Cabarrus Street in downtown Raleigh, media outlets reported.
After his arrest Barber was taken into Wake County Detention Center in Raleigh and placed on medical observation in a single cell.
He was found unresponsive early on the morning of Jan. 9 and was resuscitated by paramedics who took him to WakeMed, where he was admitted to the intensive care unit.
A test at the hospital showed signs of pneumonia, and he died the next afternoon, according to the autopsy report.
This story was originally published January 14, 2024 at 5:37 PM with the headline "Autopsy released for Raleigh man who died in Wake jail after deadly car crash."
