Glenville, Georgia — An inmate at a Georgia prison used a gun to kill a kitchen worker before shooting himself and killing himself early Sunday, state officials said.
The Georgia Department of Corrections said in a statement that it was investigating the death at Smith State Prison in rural southeast Georgia. The department has released few details at this time, including how the inmate acquired the firearm.
Authorities said in a statement that inmate Jaidrex Hart shot and killed a food service worker in the prison kitchen around 4:30 a.m. Sunday, then killed himself with the gun.
“The weapon is now in the custody of GDC and a full and thorough investigation will be conducted into the circumstances that led to this tragic incident,” the statement said.
Agency spokeswoman Lori Benoit declined to provide further information in a phone call, but said the agency would release more information as it became available.
The slain kitchen worker, Orleon Shabea Grace, 24, of Statesboro, had been working at the prison since January, according to the Bureau of Prisons. She was employed by Aramark, a Philadelphia-based company that provides food services to prisons in Georgia and other U.S. states.
“We are heartbroken by the loss of our colleague and our thoughts and prayers go out to her family,” Aramark spokeswoman Debbie Albert said in an emailed statement. “This is a tragedy for all of us.”
Albert said the company is cooperating with Georgia prison authorities in their investigation.
It is the second killing of a staff member at Smith State Prison in less than a year. Corrections officer Robert Clark, 42, died in October after being attacked in the back with a homemade weapon by an inmate he was guarding.
A state investigation into a widespread contraband scheme within the prison led to the arrest and firing of prison warden Bryan Adams in February 2023. Adams was charged with extortion, bribery, making false statements or documents, and violating his oath of office.
Hart had been incarcerated since 2015 after being convicted in Carroll County of intentional homicide and aggravated assault, according to online prison records. His earliest scheduled release was 2043.
Smith State Prison is a 1,500-inmate maximum security prison that holds offenders deemed violent or poses a flight risk.
