Authorities say a Georgia inmate somehow obtained a gun and shot and killed a prison kitchen worker before turning the gun on himself.
Jaedrex Hart, who faces at least another 19 years at Smith State Prison on a manslaughter conviction, shot and killed kitchen employee Oreon Shavea Grace about 4:30 a.m. Sunday, according to the state Department of Corrections.
The department has released few details, including how Hart obtained the weapon or why he targeted the kitchen worker, who friends said was a 24-year-old mother.
“The weapon is now in the custody of GDC and a full investigation will be conducted into the circumstances that led to this tragic incident,” the Prison Service said.
Grace had just started work in January at Glenville Correctional Facility for Men, a maximum security facility that holds offenders deemed violent or threatening to flee.
She was an employee of Aramark, a Philadelphia-based company that provides food services to prisons.
“We are heartbroken by the loss of our colleague and our thoughts and prayers go out to her family,” Aramark spokeswoman Debbie Albert said.
“This is a tragedy for all of us.”
Hart had been serving time since 2015 for intentional homicide and aggravated assault, and was scheduled for release at the earliest in June 2043. Prison officials said Hart turned the gun on himself and was pronounced dead.
Condolences to Grace flooded her online obituary, with many saying they were “praying” for her family and children.
“As a member of the GDC family we are deeply saddened by this beautiful soul,” one person wrote.
“God knows you are gone too soon,” another wrote. “I always loved you like my own. My condolences to your family and children.”
This is the second time in the last year that a Smith State Prison staff member has been killed by an inmate.
Corrections officer Robert Clark, 42, died in October after being attacked in the back with a homemade weapon by an inmate serving a sentence for murder.
The prison warden, Bryan Adams, was arrested and fired in February 2023 as a result of a state investigation into a long-running contraband scheme within the prison.
He was charged with extortion, bribery, making false statements or documents and violating his oath as a public servant.
With post wire
