Dead inmate was to be released to mental health facility

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- New details are emerging about the case of an inmate who died at the Santa Clara County Jail last Thursday.

Officials identified the inmate as Michael James Tyree, 31, a transient who also lived in Florida for a while.

Court records indicate a judge decided over a month ago Tyree would get treatment at a residential mental health facility, but was waiting for a bed.

Officials are still trying to determine if Tyree was mistreated or beaten after he was found unresponsive in his cell.

Court records indicate Tyree was to be transferred to an adult residential crisis facility operated by San Jose-based Momentum for Mental Health, but he remained in county jail until a bed was available.

Three correctional officers, all of them deputy sheriffs, were suspended after Tyree was found unresponsive in his cell early Thursday morning. Efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.

Court files say Tyree was arrested several times in the past couple of years in San Jose. He was picked up once with needles and syringes south of SAP Center.

In the Spring, he was found in possession of a stolen laptop computer taken from a local library. And a year ago, he was arrested for possession of methamphetamine while loitering outside Trinity Cathedral church in downtown San Jose.

The coroner's office has put a hold on the autopsy report and his driver's license photo.

A court officer confirms search warrants were issued over the weekend as the investigation focuses on the three suspended correctional officers.

Officials say the warrants will be made public in 10 days.