A New Jersey lawyer who had been found comatose in his cell on Sunday after being charged with killing his longtime girlfriend and escaping to Cuba five years prior risked a severe sentence, according to authorities.James Ray III, 60, was rushed to University Hospital in Newark after a medical emergency at the county jail, according to a statement from Essex County’s chief of staff, Phil Alagia.
Ray was later pronounced dead there on Sunday. According to him, an investigation is ongoing and the cause of death will be determined by the medical examiner’s office.
Jim Troisi, the vice president of the union that is in charge of representing senior jail employees, said that Ray had been discovered unconscious in his cell on Sunday night. Before being transferred to the hospital, a sergeant who discovered him gave him Narcan, a medication that treats overdoses, according to Troisi.
Angela Bledsoe, 44, was allegedly shot by Ray at their Montclair home in October 2018 after she dropped off their daughter for school, according to the authorities. She was due to meet with a realtor that day and had been planned to move out, according to the prosecution. Ray argued that he took defensive action.