Family Questions Cause of Excelsior Springs Man’s Death in Jail

EXCELSIOR SPRINGS, Mo. (AP) — The family of a northwest Missouri man who died in a municipal jail is raising questions about his sudden death.

Benjamin Chase, 21, of Excelsior Springs, died Sunday in the city jail after his arrest on Saturday on a warrant involving weapons violations, police said.

Officers used a stun gun on Chase during a brief chase before he was arrested, Excelsior Springs Police Chief Gregory Dull told The Kansas City Star.

Chase reportedly declined to go to a hospital for a medical evaluation and was taken to the jail.

He was found unresponsive in his cell Sunday afternoon during a routine check and pronounced dead shortly after he was found.

Dull said Chase had eaten lunch earlier in the day and appeared fine hours earlier.

An attorney representing Chase’s family, Matthew Merryman, said his relatives want to know the cause of death and more about the use of force before his arrest.

Records involving the charges that led to Chase’s arrest were no longer publicly available Thursday because the case has been closed.