Woman Dies in Airport Holding Cell

Greg Owen

Attorney

0 CommentsPrint ArticleSubscribe

On Friday, a 45 year old woman, Carol Anne Gotbaum, was attempting to travel through Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in route to an alcohol rehabilitation center. She was late for her flight, and when it was made clear to her that she would not be allowed to board, according to witnesses, she began yelling and running throughout the terminal.

As a result of her disturbing behavior, she was handcuffed by officers and was taken to a holding room sans a surveillance camera. While in holding room she continued to scream. When she suddenly became quiet, officers checked on her only to find her unconscious. To their surprise, she died while in the holding room.

An autopsy will be preformed in the presence of a representative of the decedent's family. The attorney representing the family, Manning, said "We're not going to jump to any conclusions without any evidence. We want to see what the autopsy reveals. We want to see what exactly happened to her."

Update: Preliminary autopsy - inconclusive.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Wrongful Death.