Inmate, 61, in upstate N.Y. prison dies in midst of correction officers’

A state prisoner died early Saturday at Auburn Correctional Facility in the Finger Lakes region — in the midst of the correction officers’ wildcat strike now entering its seventh day — amid allegations he did not receive medical care the previous night.

Jonathan Grant, 61, was found unresponsive in his cell early Saturday at the 200-year-old maximum security prison in Auburn, N.Y., which has been operating at about 58% of capacity since well before the strike, a statement from prison officials said.

A member of the National Guard, which has been deployed because of the strike, and facility medical staff and later paramedics tried to revive him, the officials said.

But he could not be saved. Grant was declared dead at 8:32 a.m., the officials said. His cause of death is unknown and the circumstances are under investigation.

At least 4,500 National Guardsmen have been deployed to state prisons across New York in response to the unsanctioned strike that began Monday. The strike started three days before murder charges were unsealed Thursday against six officers in the Dec. 9 fatal beating of inmate Robert Brooks at Marcy Correctional Facility.

Grant had been in prison since August 2011 on a 34-to-40-year sentence for a rape and burglary conviction in Brooklyn, records show.

The exact circumstances surrounding Grant’s death were unclear late Saturday, but advocates were circulating a Facebook post by a relative of another man held at Auburn that claimed Grant had sought medical assistance prior to being discovered unresponsive.

Grant’s death drove home concerns in some quarters about the effect of the strike on the people held in prison.

“The correctional staff on strike bear responsibility for this death,” said Anthony Dixon, deputy director of Parole Prep and an activist on prison issues.

Dixon called on the state to temporarily close prisons where officers are on strike and move the inmate population to facilities closer to New York City.

“This action would send a clear message: Job security is directly tied to staff commitment and operational responsibility,” he said.

Negotiations between the state and the correction officers via their union are continuing.

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In a statement earlier Saturday, state officials said the striking officers were being docked pay each day they refuse to return to work, and are losing their healthcare coverage.

They will also be brought up on disciplinary charges, the statement said.

Dixon also called on the state Legislature to pass the Elder Parole bill, which increases chances for prisoners above the age of 55 to win their parole. At 61, Grant would have qualified.

“The issue is not understaffing but over-incarceration. Passing the Elder Parole bill would directly relieve [the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision], particularly the urgent medical needs of elderly individuals during strikes,” he said, noting one in four people in prison is above the age threshold.

The bill has been struck in the Legislature since it was first introduced in 2018.

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