Burglary Suspect Faces Murder Complaint After Incident At Local Hospital

Oklahoma City police have an unusual murder case on their hands. The state medical examiner’s office has ruled a metro man’s death a homicide after a burglary suspect jumped on the victim’s hospital bed in an attempt to escape authorities, authorities said.

Investigators said a routine burglary arrest in April turned into a deadly ordeal. Police had 25-year-old Jimmy McCoy in custody when an officer noticed he was having a seizure in the backseat of the patrol car. McCoy was taken to INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center.   

“During the hospital stay, Mr. McCoy need to use the bathroom,” said Capt. Bo Mathews. “The officer did unlock his handcuffs so he could use the restroom.”

Police said that is when McCoy took off down the hallway and barricaded himself in 48-year-old Reginald Morrisey's room. Morrisey was hospitalized for a stroke he suffered in February. The officer and hospital security caught up with McCoy and reported he was jumping up and down on the victim's hospital bed attempting to flee through the ceiling. Police said he also tried to jump out the sixth-floor window.

“Mr. McCoy would not stop or adhere to the officer’s commands,” said Mathews. “So the officer did use OC spray or pepper spray to try to get him to adhere to the officer’s commands.”

Police said the stroke patient died in the hospital five days after the incident. In an eight-page report, the medical examiner ruled Morrisey's death a homicide due to the suspect’s actions.

Morrisey’s grieving family did not want to speak on camera to News 9 but shared photos of him.

The burglary suspect now faces a murder complaint and a long list of other felony charges.

“He’s had some arrests,” said Mathews. “He’s had some possession of marijuana, alcohol related driving offenses, burglary and threats -- domestic threats.”
 
INTEGRIS hospital officials shared this statement with News 9 regarding the patient’s death:

The suspect in question was at our hospital on April 9 being guarded by law enforcement. In an attempt to escape authorities, he did enter another patient’s room. Patient privacy laws prohibit us from speaking specifically about that patient.

We offer our sincere condolences to the victim’s family. A hospital should be a place for healing not harm. Our security officers did respond to this event and aided in the eventual capture of this individual.