Inmate Dies at N.Y. Prison as Corrections Officers Strike Continues
An inmate at a New York State prison was pronounced dead on Saturday after being found unresponsive in his cell, state officials said.The inmate, Jonathan Grant, 61, was found on Saturday morning at the Auburn Correctional Facility in Cayuga County, just west of Syracuse, according to the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.Security and medical workers at the prison and a member of the National Guard tried to revive him but were unsuccessful, said Thomas Mailey, a spokesman for the corrections department.The cause of Mr.Grant’s death is under investigation.
He had been unwell, according to two prisoners at Auburn and another person who reviewed information about Mr.Grant’s health.
That person said Mr.Grant had had several strokes: At least five were documented, including at least one in the past few weeks.
The two prisoners said Mr.Grant had asked for medical help days earlier but had been brushed off.
The corrections department did not respond to questions about Mr.Grant’s health before his death.Mr.
Grant entered custody in 2011 and was serving a sentence of 34 to 40 years for first-degree rape and burglary, Mr.Mailey said.His death comes amid mounting tension and public scrutiny of the state’s prison system.
Corrections officers at dozens of facilities, including Auburn, have continued wildcat strikes for days — without their union’s authorization and in defiance of a judge’s order — to protest what they say are dangerous working conditions, severe staffing shortages and forced overtime.Last week, Gov.
Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, deployed National Guard soldiers to act as replacement workers.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a s...