Local News in Brief : Prisoner Found Dead in Jail Cell

A 31-year-old Torrance woman who was being held on suspicion of child endangerment and narcotics possession has been found dead in her jail cell at the Lennox sheriff’s substation, authorities said Saturday.

Pamela Jean Wigginton, 31, had complained to a cellmate Friday evening that she was feeling ill from the effects of drug withdrawal, according to authorities. However, the official cause of her death had not been determined by the county coroner’s office Saturday.

Authorities said Wigginton was arrested Thursday afternoon at the La Mirage Motel on South Western Avenue by sheriff’s deputies who had been summoned to investigate complaints of a noisy fight. When they arrived, they said, they found Wigginton and a second woman naked in a motel room, along with Wigginton’s 4-month-old girl and Michael Mason, 43.

The baby, authorities said, was lying unattended on the floor amid broken glass and other debris. Sheriff’s deputies arrested Wigginton and Mason and took the baby into protective custody. Substances believed to be heroin and cocaine were found in the motel room, authorities said.

Late Friday night, a jailer noticed Wigginton lying partially off her cell bunk and entered the cell to wake her. When she failed to respond, paramedics were called and they pronounced her dead, authorities said.