George County sheriff identifies first jail inmate to die of COVID-19 in South Mississippi
The 48-year-old state prisoner in the George County jail who contracted COVID-19 and died days later has been identified as Carl Shane Cox, Sheriff Keith Havard said.
Cox had been serving a three-year sentence for felony false pretense out of Harrison County following his sentencing on Jan. 21. False pretense is a crime that’s committed when someone forges a signature on a document to obtain someone else’s belongings, and it is felony if the items are valued at $500 or more.
Cox was not among the 233 inmates at the George County jail to test positive for coronavirus since news first spread of the widespread outbreak there last month.
Instead, Havard said, Cox started feeling bad Wednesday and was immediately taken to George County Regional Medical Center for treatment. He had told jail officials he was having trouble breathing.
At the hospital, it was determined that Cox was suffering from the coronavirus.
His condition deteriorated over the next few days, and he died at the hospital in Lucedale on Saturday.
George County Coroner DeeAnn Murrah said an autopsy is pending to confirm the cause of death was complications from coronavirus or some other underlying condition.
The number of coronavirus cases at the George County jail among prisoners is now 234 cases with Cox’s diagnosis and subsequent death.
In addition, at least seven jailers, or corrections officers, tested positive for the virus.
There have been no new outbreaks in prisoners since Cox’s death, though the number could change if additional testing is needed on other inmates.
Havard has reassured the public that all necessary steps are being taken to care for the inmates who are sick and said efforts are ongoing “to mitigate the further spread of the virus, including deep cleaning of all frequently touched surfaces, such as light switches, door knobs, hand rails, workstations, and countertops.”
The George County jail has had the single largest outbreak COVID-19 outbreak so far as a correctional facility in Mississippi.
The state’s health department reported Sunday a total of 581 coronavirus cases and 5 deaths in George County, with 241 of those cases attributed to the outbreak among staff and prisoners at the George County jail.
Melvin Earl Thomas, a 66-year-old inmate serving a 20-year sentence for armed robbery out of Perry County, died at Merit Health in Rankin County on Friday. He had been serving time since Aug. 20, 2007, according to the Mississippi Department of Corrections.
Another state prisoner, J.C. Ormand, 91, died Saturday in the hospital at the state prison at Parchman. He had been serving a life sentence for rape out of Lauderdale County since Aug. 19, 1992.
No foul play is suspected in any of the deaths.
This story was originally published August 10, 2020 at 12:15 PM.
