Linn County Jail inmate dies after complaining of chest pains

CEDAR RAPIDS — An inmate being held at the Linn County Jail in a federal drug case died Friday night despite lifesaving efforts after he complained of chest pains, according to the sheriff’s office.

An autopsy will be conducted on the inmate, Marshall Mosby, 39, of Dubuque, and the death remains under investigation.

According to a release from Linn County Sheriff Brian Gardner, inmates in a dormitory-style cell notified authorities shortly before 9 p.m. Friday that another inmate needed medical attention.

Mosby said he was having chest pains, but soon became unresponsive “and staff began lifesaving measures, including CPR, and applying a heart monitor equipped with defibrillation capabilities,” Gardner said in the release. Other rescuers from Area Ambulance and a sheriff’s crew performed advance lifesaving until Mosby was declared dead, about a half-hour after the incident began.

Gardner said jail staff had last checked on him just about 15 minutes before the emergency began.

According to federal court records, Mosby agreed in April to plead guilty to a charge of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, which carries a minimum mandatory sentence of five years in prison. Authorities who searched Mosby’s Dubuque apartment said they found about $20,000 worth of heroin and $6,000 worth of other drugs including cocaine, according to a report last fall by the Dubuque Telegraph-Herald.

Mosby was set to be sentenced on Oct. 13 in Cedar Rapids, records show.