Woman Found Dead After Early Morning Release by Police

It was confirmed on Thursday, August, 12, 2010, by Sheriff Lee Baca that the remains of Mitrice Richardson were found in the Santa Monica Mountains. This was the missing person case from September 2009, where Sheriff’s officials had taken her in for failing to pay a restaurant bill, then released her at 1:00 a.m. with no ride home. Remains were identified by dental records; a cause of death is not known. The remains show no obvious sign of foul play and were found near a neglected marijuana grove by a park ranger. Her parents had questioned the Police Department’s release procedure since Richardson had shown signs of mental instability earlier that day. Authorities say that they did not notice any behavior that would suggest an altered mental state. The law requires that if officials believe some one is mentally troubled they must have the person mentally evaluated before being released. The family of Ms. Richardson may file a civil suit if they believe authorities were negligent in failing to properly evaluate Ms. Richardson at the time of her release from custody.