Man collapses at courthouse, dies

LIMA -- An 81-year-old Delphos man collapsed in a restroom in the lobby of the Allen County Sheriff's Office on Wednesday and died of an apparent heart attack.

Tommie A. Ward was taken to St. Rita's Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, officials said.

Ward, who was in the building as a witness in a court case upstairs at the Common Pleas Court, stopped in the restroom on the first floor. After a short time passed without coming out, someone with Ward alerted a staff member at the Sheriff's Office, Sheriff Dan Beck said.

The staff member went into the restroom to check on him and found Ward unconscious. The staff member called paramedics and began cardiopulmonary resuscitation, Beck said.

Allen County Coroner Gary Beasley said Ward had a history of health problems and ruled the death as natural. There will be no autopsy, he said.