Man accused in woman’s murder dies after Kitsap County Jail altercation

BREMERTON, Wash. -- A murder suspect critically injured in the Kitsap County Jail on Saturday died in the hospital Friday morning, according to a statement from the Washington State Patrol.

Sean Michael Howell, 28, told Bremerton police detectives he killed Sabrina Olson-Smith, 23, at his residence May 8, according to court documents.

Prosecutors charged him in Kitsap County Superior Court with first-degree murder, but he never appeared in court, The Kitsap Sun reported.

The morning after he was booked into jail, corrections officers removed Howell from a crisis cell where he had been lodged after he started damaging a sprinkler, according to authorities.

“Howell became combative,” the State Patrol statement said, and after officers restrained him, he appeared to go into medical crisis. Howell was taken to Harrison Medical Center, where he died six days later.

Authorities are investigating his death.