Cause of Greenwood inmate's death 'inconclusive' after autopsy

Indiana State Police detectives are investigating the death of 19-year-old Kyler L. Myers, a Johnson County Jail inmate who was found unconscious in the back of a jail transport van Monday.

In a news conference Tuesday, State Police Capt. Dave Bursten said the cause and manner of Myers' death were found to be inconclusive by a Johnson County coroner, but he said there were no signs of trauma to Myers' body.

The Greenwood man was arrested by Greenwood police about 2:30 a.m. Monday on two counts of possession of paraphernalia and one count of disorderly conduct after he called police to report an attempted break-in of his home. Investigating officers found only Myers and his girlfriend and said he had taken synthetic drugs and appeared to have hallucinated, a police report said.

Myers was booked into the Johnson County Jail about 5:41 a.m. Bursten said Myers became agitated with other inmates that morning and "displayed unusual behavior."

Because of his erratic and aggressive actions, Myers was evaluated by the Johnson County Jail nurse about 11:40 a.m. After their interaction, the nurse asked that Myers be taken to the hospital, which is across the street from the jail.

At 12:09 p.m., Johnson County Sheriff Doug Cox said, Myers walked from the nurse's area to the jail van unassisted and was secured with hand, belt and leg restraints during the trip. The restraints used on inmates in the van are part of department policy.

Three minutes later, the transport arrived at the hospital, and Myers was found unresponsive in the back of the van. Police said lifesaving measures were unsuccessful.

Cox said Myers rode alone in the back of the van, which is also department policy because of safety concerns for sheriff's deputies. Although the driver is able to communicate with inmates in the back, Cox said he did not know whether anyone spoke with Myers during the trip.

"If it was a medical emergency, obviously they would call an ambulance," Cox said, adding that jail personnel did not see Myers' condition as urgent. According to the police report from his arrest, Myers had been evaluated by medics at his home before being taken into custody.

A member of Myers' family reached Tuesday by The Indianapolis Star declined to comment.

According to the report from the Greenwood Police Department, Myers admitted to having taken K2 or Spice, a synthetic drug that mimics the effects of marijuana, the day before and just prior to his arrest.

When an officer asked Myers how much K2 he had consumed, Myers said he "was uncertain of when he actually consumed it because he was confused about what time it was," the police report said.

Myers called police early Monday to report that people were trying to get into his house, according to the report. When officers arrived, they did not find anyone inside the home except Myers and his girlfriend. They also discovered drug paraphernalia, including a large glass pipe and a hookah smoking device, along with some residue on the pipe, police said.

The officer wrote in his arrest report that he believed Myers "experienced a hallucination of his previous guests in his residence," resulting in his call to police.

According to the Indiana Poison Center, synthetic cannabinoids such as K2 are a mixture of herbs sprayed with synthetic chemicals that replicate THC, the psychoactive chemical in marijuana. When ingested, the man-made drugs create a similar high.

Officials say the substances also frequently have harmful and damaging side effects, including chest pain, seizures, extreme paranoia, hypertension, kidney damage and liver damage.

Synthetic cannabinoids and synthetic cathinones, together defined as synthetic drugs, are banned in Indiana.

Bursten said he could not speculate on whether the behavior Myers exhibited during his time in the jail were the actions of a person under the influence of Spice.

A toxicology report is pending and could take four to six weeks to be completed.

Bursten said the investigation is still in its infancy but said State Police investigators do not suspect any wrongdoing by Greenwood police, the Johnson County Sheriff's office or Johnson County Jail officers.

Star reporter Vic Ryckaert contributed to this story.

Call Star reporter Michael Anthony Adams at (317) 444-6123. Follow him on Twitter: @MichaelAdams317.