The Department of Corrections says the inmate died after an ‘altercation’ with another inmate. The coroner’s office says the man was stabbed multiple times.
MACON, Ga. — A Putnam County inmate was stabbed to death at Macon’s Central State Prison on Monday, Bibb County Coroner Leon Jones confirmed.
Leon Kelly was killed at the prison while serving a 10-year prison sentence for the distribution of meth out of Putnam County, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC), which runs the prisons.
While the GDC only said the inmate died “following an altercation with another inmate,” Jones said Kelly was stabbed multiple times. He was pronounced dead by deputy coroner Luann Stone at 2:45 p.m.
The Department of Justice criticized the GDC’s reporting of deaths, including failure to classify deaths as homicides until after an autopsy is conducted even if the department the cause of death is clear.
The GDC said that the body was handed over to the Bibb County Coroner’s Office, which says an autopsy is scheduled at the GBI crime lab.
The GDC said that the death is being investigated by the GDC’s Office of Professional Standards, which is standard procedure. They said additional details are not available because the investigation is ongoing.
According to the Georgia Department of Corrections, Kelly would be eligible for release in 2033.
His death comes after the Department of Justice issued a scathing report which — among other things — claimed the GDC fails to keep the inmates they hold safe from harm. They noted that the murder rate is three times higher than the rest of the national average in U.S. prisons.
RELATED: ‘Shock and horror’ | DOJ finds Georgia prison conditions ‘out of control’ and ‘unconstitutional’
While prisons are a dangerous place, the DOJ said the GDC fails to meet their constitutional requirements to keep prisoners safe from harm, stemming from chronic understaffing in Georgia prisons.
The GDC says that the DOJ report reflects a misunderstanding of the state corrections in the U.S. and claims the Federal Bureau of Prisons deals with similar problems.
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