Mother says jailed daughter died after pleas for food went unanswered

Cindy Jones says her daughter, Britney Grier, died on June 30 after jail staff failed to provide the snacks her daughter needed to manage a rare metabolic disorder.

Jones told jailers that "all I want you to do is make sure she eats," and later received a call from state investigators saying Britney had been found unconscious in her cell and had died. Jones had placed almost $300 on Britney's commissary account so snacks would be available, the account of events says.

Britney Grier suffered from glycogen storage disease type I, a condition described in the transcript as requiring regular eating to prevent dangerous drops in blood sugar. According to the family account, Britney told her mother on the phone that she was hungry and believed she would die without the snacks her mother had paid for.

Weeks passed before local authorities publicly acknowledged an investigation into Britney's death. The Alabama law enforcement agency handling the case told Jones that it would turn its findings over to the Chilton County District Attorney's Office when the inquiry is complete. The transcript reports no public comment from the Chilton County sheriff's office during that period.

In addition to the family's account that jail staff were asked to feed Britney, the reporter notes that Jones was later given a bag of food the daughter had not eaten. The narrative framed the case as apparently preventable and raised questions about the custodial duty to ensure the health and safety of people in detention.

State investigators' findings and any subsequent steps by the district attorney's office were not recorded in the transcript.