Early Monday morning, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that 46-year-old Quadir Boykin of Menifee was found unresponsive inside his jail cell at the Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility in Banning, California and later pronounced dead. Deputies and medical personnel responded shortly after 12:40 a.m., but lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful. Authorities say there were no obvious signs of foul play, and a final cause of death is still pending review by the Riverside County Coroner.
Boykin had been in custody at the Banning jail’s Unit 16, Day Room D, where he was undergoing a mental health evaluation related to pending criminal charges, officials said. He had a history of legal issues in Riverside County, including an arrest in June for allegedly setting a fire and being charged with arson and other offenses. In addition to that case, court records show previous charges including felony petty theft and a series of past convictions.
According to reporting from local news outlets, Boykin had been scheduled for a return of a doctor’s mental health evaluation report in mid-January after a December hearing was vacated. Friends or family members have not publicly released statements, but those who knew him described him as a person who faced real struggles and was trying to find stability amid mental health challenges.
The Sheriff’s Department said deputies first discovered Boykin laying unresponsive and immediately called on nearby medical staff. County fire paramedics took over efforts to help him, but he was pronounced dead at the facility. Despite the ongoing investigation, officials noted no evidence suggesting foul play at the scene. The coroner’s office has the case and will formally determine how Boykin died.
Boykin’s death highlights a broader concern around in-custody fatalities in Riverside County detention facilities, which have been the subject of increased scrutiny and legal action for withholding records and resisting transparency in past deaths. A lawsuit filed earlier this year argued for more public access to investigations of similar cases.
For the Menifee community and loved ones of Boykin, the news has brought an outpouring of grief and reflection on how mental health support is handled within the justice system. Many advocates say this tragedy underscores the importance of compassionate care and monitoring for people struggling with psychiatric concerns while in custody.
As the coroner continues its review, family and friends are left remembering Quadir not as a case number, but as a person with a full life — a life marked by challenges, yes, but also by the human moments and connections that defined him to those who knew him best.
