SACRAMENTO, CA — Authorities are investigating the death of former Nebraska running back Lawrence Phillips as a suspected suicide.
The 40-year-old was found in his California jail cell on Wednesday. The prison staff was conducting security checks after midnight pacific time when they found him unresponsive. Phillips was pronounced dead 90 minutes later.
He was facing the death penalty for the alleged murder of a former cellmate. The ex-Husker was facing a 31-year prison sentence after being convicted in 2008 on various charges, including domestic violence, corporal injury to a spouse, false imprisonment and vehicle theft.
Phillips played in Lincoln form 1993 to 1995 and was the sixth overall pick in the 1996 NFL Draft.
