Overview

• Ashley “Ashly” Jo Gromnicki, 34, was charged with second-degree murder and ordered held without bail after a court appearance where she did not enter a plea.
• Gromnicki is accused of supplying fentanyl inside Maple Street Correctional Center on Sept. 29, leading to the death of 31-year-old inmate Markeisha Monique Renee Blount.
• Jail staff administered naloxone during lifesaving efforts, and prosecutors say fentanyl was found in a cell that housed Blount and seven other women.
• The Sheriff’s Office says it conducted specialized sweeps after the death and intercepted additional contraband, including an Oct. 1 arrest tied to an attempted smuggling effort.
• Blount’s death is one of several recent in-custody fatalities in San Mateo County, and the coroner has yet to issue the official cause of death.