Man being held at Chesapeake jail dies in apparent suicide

CHESAPEAKE — A 46-year-old inmate died by apparent suicide Friday at the Chesapeake city jail.

About 5:45 p.m., Michael Shawn Hastings was found hanging in his cell, Janelle Scott, Chesapeake Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman, wrote in an email Tuesday.

Deputies and medical staff “performed life-saving measures” until EMS got there, but Hastings later died, she said.

The city’s police department is investigating the death, which is standard when someone dies while in custody. No foul play is suspected, Scott said.

Hastings had been incarcerated at the jail for just over two weeks, since Feb. 25.

The Chesapeake Sheriff’s Office often announces inmate deaths publicly, but it didn’t issue a press release in Hastings’ death because of “extenuating circumstances” in notifying his family, Scott said.

“However, we received several media inquiries and responded to them promptly in an effort to be transparent,” Scott wrote in an email.

Margaret Matray, 757-222-5216, margaret.matray@pilotonline.com