LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Family and friends are grieving an unexpected loss after a Fayette County Detention Center inmate was found unresponsive inside of her cell over the weekend.
Disbelief and grief are the emotions Joe Norris has been carrying since he got the call his dear friend and roommate, Alicia Meredith Marie Ropp, 27, was found dead.
"Unreal. Very much unreal. Like a bad, bad dream. I love that girl. I'm 65 years old. She cleans my house and takes care of me. Helps me get all of my banks in order. She's been a pleasure," Norris said.
Norris first met Ropp while she was working at the Red Mile two years ago. He offered her a place to stay and instantly they became as close as family.
"Alicia was very kind, sweet, would help anybody. The kindest person she could be. She was such a sweet innocent young girl," Norris said.
According to a press release, on Tuesday, February 25, Ropp was admitted into the Fayette County Detention Center for a probation violation, leaving the scene of an accident, no insurance, and failure to register a motor vehicle.
Four days later, the morning of Saturday, March 1, correction officers found Ropp unresponsive in her cell.
A toxicology report has not been released yet. The cause of death is still undetermined at this time.
"For mistakes she made in the past caught up with her, but it wasn't a death sentence. It should have been more handled a little differently," said Norris. "The next time somebody comes in and you hear that they're sick and they're vomiting and they're having severe diarrhea and you're supposed to and you hear this with your own ears and taped and no one intervenes."
Norris says Ropp had told her boyfriend a couple days before she died that she was very sick. Norris says, Ropp was going through a detox and working towards getting sober. He just wants to know what happened within those four days.
"If it had been their daughter and it happened in four days. They'd be wanting answers."
