Mount Vernon town hall meeting held to discuss inmate death

MOUNT VERNON, N.Y. (WABC) -- A town hall meeting was held in Mount Vernon Tuesday night concerning the death of a jail inmate in Westchester County.

The public meeting was held to discuss the death of Raynette Turner.

The 42-year-old woman died in a police holding cell last month, two days after being arrested for shoplifting.

Turner, a mother of eight, was arrested Saturday, July 25, for allegedly trying to steal crab legs from Restaurant Depot.

She had been treated for various medical issues at the time of her arrest, and was taken to Montefiore-Mount Vernon Hospital. She was then released back to police custody Sunday evening.

Monday afternoon, she was found unresponsive and lying on her side on a wooden bench in her holding cell.

Her cause of death has still not been determined.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is investigating the case as part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's executive order to have a special prosecutor investigate deaths that occur under the custody of law enforcement.

Mayor Earnest Davis said a local church is helping to make sure her eight children's scholastic needs are met.