More than a month after the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department announced the “unexpected death” of a deputy, coroner’s records revealed he died from the effects of methamphetamine.
Deputy Jonathan Stewart was found unconscious at the South Los Angeles Sheriff’s Station late on April 27, according to reports at the time. Emergency personnel were called, but the 41-year-old deputy died at the scene. The department has released few details about the circumstances surrounding his death.
Currently, the Los Angeles County Coroner’s website states that Stewart’s cause of death was “the influence of methamphetamine.” The website does not list any secondary or contributing causes, but states that the manner of death was deemed accidental and that the case is still open.
It’s unclear whether authorities found drug paraphernalia or illegal drugs at the scene of Stewart’s death, and the coroner’s office did not immediately respond to further questions Thursday morning.
A Sheriff’s Department spokesman had no immediate comment.
Stewart joined the Sheriff’s Department in 2006 and worked at the Inmate Reception Center before transferring to the South Los Angeles Police Department in 2014. The Sheriff’s Department previously said Stewart became a field training officer in 2020 and served in that position until his death. He is survived by his wife and three children.
“Jonathan served the South Los Angeles community for 10 years,” police said in an April statement. “He was respected and highly regarded by his coworkers and superiors for his unwavering dedication.”
At the time, the Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs Association launched an online fundraiser to support Stewart’s widow and children.
His death came just days before a sheriff’s deputy from the police department’s anti-gang unit arrested him on suspicion of smuggling heroin into the county jail, according to arrest records and multiple law enforcement sources.