Friends, family demand answers after 29-year-old found dead in Harnett County detention center

Friends and family are demanding answers after a 29-year-old man was found dead inside a Harnett County detention center.

2021-06-25

The search for answers has begun after Eric Griffith was found unresponsive in his cell Tuesday.

Some of Griffith's family members and friends protested in Harnett County Friday outside the detention center. He was being held for non-compliance, failing to pay fines or fees.

"I love him, and i wish i could talk to him, and i know i can’t," said Griffith's friend, Zach Hinkle.

Hinkle chokes up talking about Griffith. The friends worked together at Hinkle's fencing company.

"It was a tight bond, it was a great friendship," Hinkle said. "He was a great soul."

Griffith, whose friends and family admit he was struggling with addiction, was locked up in the county detention center over the weekend.

"We thought he was safe. We figured at the jail house, if he’s in there, he can’t get anything as far as drugs go," Hinkle said. "This is neglect. I can’t imagine how many others would feel the same way if it was their loved one, their best friend, their son, their brother."

The sheriff's office says a cellmate reported Griffith was unresponsive.

In a statement, the sheriff's office said, "detention personnel immediately contacted telecommunications to dispatch paramedics. Detention officers and detention medical personnel responded with an AED and performed CPR until Harnett County paramedics arrived."

Hinkle and his brother hope an investigation will reveal why their friend died in a jail when he wanted to go to rehab.

"Eric was a good person. Eric didn’t deserve this, he did not deserve this," friend Ryan Hinkle said. "I wish this wouldn’t have happened and I wish I could have done something earlier. It’s haunting me."

The family is waiting for the results of an autopsy to determine Griffith's cause of death.

The State Bureau of Investigations is taking the lead on this investigation which is typical for deaths inside a facility like this. The sheriff's office says it will also complete an internal review.