Coroner's inquest next month in death at Scott County jail

Southeast Missourian

BENTON, Mo. -- A coroner's inquest to examine the death of Scott County Jail inmate Earnest Fenton likely will be conducted in November after toxicology reports in the case are complete, said Scott Amick, Scott County coroner.

"Those reports are vital to any conclusive decision the jury might make," Amick said Monday.

Fenton, 43, of Fayette, Mo., was pronounced dead Thursday at St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. A fellow inmate had discovered him unconscious on a mattress on the floor.

Fenton and his brother, Troy Fenton, 36, of Boonville, Mo., were accused of robbing the Super D Drug Store in Sikeston, Mo., on Wednesday, making off with prescription narcotics, hiding out in a rural home a few miles away and then shooting a Sikeston police detective in the leg and burning down the house before surrendering.

The detective, Lt. Mark Crocker, is recovering from surgery on his right calf.

Amick and Scott County Sheriff Bill Ferrell aren't speculating on a cause of death but say toxicology reports likely hold the key. Troy Fenton's girlfriend, Chris Bell of Boonville, said he called her last week to say his brother had "overdosed."

Ferrell said Monday there was no reason to believe the Fentons needed medical treatment when they were arrested. Both went through a routine health screening, where they were asked about taking drugs and their well-being.

"There was no indication they had taken too much of anything," he said. "If there had been, we would have taken them. We took Troy to the hospital Friday night when he indicated he might have taken some, and he didn't have anything in him."

Ferrell said this was the first death in the jail in the 25 years he has been sheriff. He is unaware of any jail deaths prior to his joining the department in 1971.

Dr. Michael Zaricor, a Farmington, Mo., forensic pathologist, performed an autopsy on Earnest Fenton last week. Amick said there were no findings in the initial examination.

hhall@semissourian.com

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