Man dies at hospital after being detained by Dickinson police

DICKINSON, Texas – A man died at an area hospital early Sunday after he was detained by Dickinson police, the department said Sunday.

Police said they responded to a report of an accident in the parking lot of a business around 2:45 a.m. Sunday in the 4900 block of FM 517. A Dodge truck had backed up into a tree and struck a building, police said.

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Officers said they located the man, identified as Jose Antonio Sanchez, 38, attempting to back the truck up in the parking lot. Officials said they removed him from the truck and that he displayed signs of intoxication, officials said.

While at the Dickinson jail, during an observation period before a breathalyzer test, "Sanchez fell over from his seat. Sanchez was conscious and speaking with jail staff and officers, who noticed a change in his breathing," the police department posted to its Facebook page.

Officials placed Sanchez in an ambulance. While en route to Mainland Center Hospital, he suffered "a possible cardiac arrest," according to police.

Police said EMS attempted to revive him, but he later died at the hospital. 

The Galveston County Sheriff's Office is taking over the investigation and said the office is "investigating the in-custody death and (is) waiting on the autopsy for our next step."