Sheriff responds to post questioning inmate's death

WALLACE –– The Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office released a lengthy statement on Wednesday night regarding the November death of an inmate after an anonymous social media post encouraged people to take a closer look at the circumstances surrounding the man's death.  

According to the SCSO, Logan Galloway, 44, was pronounced dead just before 3:30 p.m. on November 7, due to a pulmonary thromboembolism that was exacerbated by Galloway’s weight and reported methamphetamine use. 

Pulmonary thromboembolism is the medical term for a blood clot in the lung. This can occur after a clot forms in another part of the body and travels to the lungs, cutting off or restricting blood flow and rapidly increasing blood pressure.  

Galloway had been arrested on November 5 due to a felony probation violation from a 2021 case where he had pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.  

Within the anonymous Facebook post, the original poster shared screenshots that alleged that Galloway was already showing signs of medical distress upon arrival at Shoshone County Jail and that deputies failed to provide adequate medical attention during his time there. These screenshots also stated that Galloway was in police custody for a much longer duration than what court or police records reported. 

Shoshone County Sheriff Holly Lindsey refuted many of the allegations within the post, including the length of time that Galloway was at the jail and the medical attention he received. 

“Contrary to social media posts that he was left untreated in our custody for many days, Mr. Galloway was at the SCSO detention facility for only two days,” Lindsey said. “During that time, Mr. Galloway was seen by the contracted jail medical staff and was in the process of medical transport at the time of his death.”  

Lindsey stated that Galloway’s fatal medical emergency began as deputies were transporting him to the hospital for what had reportedly been suspected to be a back or spinal injury. According to Lindsey, he was alert and speaking during the transport when he suddenly stopped breathing.  

Jail staff and first responders performed CPR on Galloway for 45 minutes before he was pronounced.  

According to Lindsey’s release, people were encouraged to “bombard” the county with public records requests pertaining to anything associated with Galloway, but she also explained why certain records are not available for public consumption.  

“While our county strives to maintain an operational structure rooted in transparency, the Idaho Public Records Act recognizes certain personal privacy interests which must be recognized and prohibits public disclosure by an agency of information that would result in an ‘unwarranted invasion of personal privacy,” Lindsey said. “As this matter involves sensitive personal information relating to an individual, we have been advised that we are limited in what information we can provide.”  

Lindsey also reported that the SCSO followed their standard procedure of immediately contacting the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office for an outside investigation following the incident.  

“The investigation did not reveal criminal liability on behalf of any of the personnel involved in the death of Mr. Galloway,” Lindsey said.  

However, the SCSO reportedly also conducted an internal review of the incident and determined that changes were needed.  

“As a result of our own review, the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office intends to implement policy changes to improve internal responses for the inmates in our care and improve staffing levels to provide increased adaptability for emergency situations,” Lindsey said. “While policy revisions are always an ongoing process, the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office will continue to review its internal procedures and strive to implement best practices within our detention facility.”  

This lines up with the SCSO’s ongoing staffing issues within the jail, where they have been utilizing patrol deputies to cover gaps in the jail schedule during high-impact times.  

Sheriff Lindsey was empathetic for Galloway’s family and told the News-Press that her office would not be discussing the matter any further than the Wednesday release.  

“We would like to encourage the community to continue being mindful of the personal nature of this event and the privacy interests of this inmate and their family,” Lindsey said.