A Georgia inmate was fatally shot inside a hospital Tuesday night after pepper spraying one jail officer and charging at another, according to authorities.
Prisoner Jacob Henson was receiving medical care around 8:45 p.m. after being stabbed during an earlier battle inside Washington State Prison when he became involved in a confrontation with one of the state prison officials accompanying him to the hospital, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Henson, 31, overpowered the officer and snatched the guard’s pepper spray canister, releasing the gas that rendered him “incapacitated,” according to the agency.
According to the GBI, when Henson attempted to confront another prison officer while still using the spray, the guard shot him.
He was pronounced dead on the scene.
The police agency said it is reviewing the prison officer’s use of deadly force, as well as the prior incident in which Henson was stabbed within the jail facility.
“Once the investigation is complete, it will be given to the Middle Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for review,” the department stated in a statement.
The Cherokee County District Attorney’s Office originally said that Henson was serving an 8-year jail sentence on 25 criminal offenses. Following his release from prison, he was sentenced to another 12 years of probation.
In the summer of 2018, he committed a series of vehicle thefts and other crimes before being arrested and pleading guilty.