Woman arrested on drug charge dies at Cook County Jail

A woman arrested on a drug possession charge earlier this week died Friday at the Cook County Jail.

Brenda Woodfork, 46, was arrested Tuesday on charges of possession of a controlled substance, after she was found with a substance suspected to be heroin, Cara Smith, a spokeswoman for the Cook County sheriff’s office, said.

Woodfork was ordered held on a $10,000 bond and was housed in a new division of the jail that has detox services available, Smith said. She was observed having difficulty breathing early Friday and later died in custody.

Woodfork, of the 5600 block of West West End Avenue, was pronounced dead at 12:45 a.m., the medical examiner’s office said. An autopsy Friday was inconclusive pending further testing.