Robert Manning-Harris, shown in a mugshot taken Aug. 2, was found dead in his cell in the Eau Claire County Jail.

On Wednesday, Aug. 6, Eau Claire County Sheriff Dave Riewestahl identified the man who was found dead Monday in an Eau Claire County jail cell as Robert L. Manning-Harris, 39, of Eau Claire.

Riewestahl said Manning-Harris had been arrested on Saturday, Aug. 2, on an outstanding warrant, just two days before he was found unresponsive in his cell. .

Manning-Harris had been charged May 13 for bail jumping, a misdemeanor, and operating a motor vehicle while revoked. He missed a court appearance on July 21 and on July 22 a bench warrant was issued.

Sheriff Riewestahl said an autopsy was completed on Manning-Harris by the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office in Minnesota, and the autopsy “did not reveal any traumatic injuries,” and he added, “results of toxicology testing are pending.”

Riewestahl also noted that neighboring Dunn County Sheriff’s Office is conducting the death investigation.

Second jail death

Mannin-Harris is the second resident in a little over two years who has been found unresponsive in the Eau Claire County Jail.

On March 12, 2023, Silver O. Jenkins, 29, a homeless woman, was also found lying unresponsive on her cell floor.

The St. Croix Sheriff’s Office conducted a death investigation that was submitted in August 2023 to the Eau Claire County Sheriff’s Office, and then for well over a year, the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) reviewed the results of the investigation before the report was released on June 9, 2025.

Sheriff Riewestahl announced in June that the DOJ would not be pressing charges in that case against any of the jail staff or medical personnel working with residents.

Jenkins’ death was attributed to her refusing to eat or take adequate amounts of liquids.

Even though Jenkins appeared “emaciated” before her death and raised concerns among the jail and medical staff, no interventions were taken to save her life because the sheriff’s office didn’t believe it had the authority for drastic measures, including forcing her to eat, and instead continued to offer Jenkins food and water and monitor her condition.