Inmate at Chino Prison Fatally Shot by Guard
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CHINO, Calif. — A guard shot and killed one of two inmates who were fighting in the “maximum of maximum security” area of the California Institute for Men in Chino. It was the first fatal shooting of the prison’s 48-year history, officials said.
Kenneth Lewis, 28, was shot in the neck about noon Thursday by a guard stationed in a gun tower, Department of Corrections Lt. Denise Morse said.
The guard first fired into the air in an attempt to stop a fight between Lewis and Jerry Thompson, 22, in an outdoor high-security yard, Morse said. But the men continued fighting and the guard, fearing that one of them was armed, aimed at Lewis’ legs because he seemed to be the aggressor, Morse said.
The bullet went through Lewis’s neck and entered Thompson’s arm, she said. Both men were taken to the prison hospital, where Lewis was pronounced dead.
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