Inmate with autism dies at the Bernalillo County jail, months after being found incompetent

A man diagnosed with autism died while behind bars at the Metropolitan Detention Center — months after being found incompetent to stand trial.

MDC spokesperson Daniel Trujillo said 33-year-old Steven Gurule was pronounced dead Friday morning. Trujillo did not give a cause of death.

Trujillo said that around 8:15 a.m. Gurule “was discovered unresponsive” and staff with the University of New Mexico Health Systems provided first aid until 8:41 a.m., when he was declared dead.

An attorney for Gurule said a Bernalillo County deputy told the family “there were no signs of violence” and he would undergo an autopsy.

Gurule is the third person to die at the jail or after falling ill at the facility this year. Since 2020, 35 inmates have died as MDC went through two for-profit medical providers before UNMH took over health care in July 2023.

Gurule, a father, had been at MDC since January 2024, when 2nd Judicial District Judge Joseph Montano granted a motion to keep him behind bars until trial. He had been accused of battering a man with a tire iron during a burglary and crashing into a bank while trying to flee.

Amy Williams, Gurule’s attorney, did not downplay the allegations against him but described him as “the sweetest client I’ve ever worked with.”

“He had a very pure heart, and he had a real recognition of what he had done to put himself in this position, but a genuine desire ... to move forward positively, despite his limitations. And I will tell you, his limitations were significant,” she told the Journal.

Gurule was diagnosed with autism while awaiting trial and found incompetent in October, according to court records. An MDC psychiatrist found Gurule had “the functional capacity of a child.”

Court records show prosecutors sought a dangerousness hearing, to determine if he is dangerous and should be sent to a mental health facility in Las Vegas, or is not dangerous and should be released to the community for treatment.

That hearing took place Thursday, and Williams said a forensic psychologist testified that Gurule was “low risk” and his mother went over the plan to treat her son should he be released to her custody.

Williams said the judge asked for a written briefing, similar to closing arguments in a trial, before making a decision. And Gurule was sent back to his cell.

She said a few inmates who knew Gurule called his mother around 9 a.m. and told her something happened but had few details. It took several hours — calls to caseworkers and prosecutors and a visit to MDC — before they learned more.

“It just speaks to the fact that, sometimes, the inmates at the facility maybe have more compassion than the facility itself, which I think is particularly, in this case, with Stephen’s particular needs, it’s heartbreaking,” Williams said.

Growing emotional, Williams said she cared greatly for Gurule. She said MDC was not the place for him.

“Jail was certainly not an appropriate location for a man with his level of competency. His needs were not and were never going to be met,” Williams said. “The fact that it took so long for this matter to be addressed was deeply unfair to him and his needs, because this is time we could have been treating him, and instead he was in jail, and now he’s gone.”