Correctional officers at troubled prison ‘used force’ on an inmate. He died the next day

An inmate at Lake Correctional Institution near Orlando died Friday after sustaining life-threatening injuries due to an officer’s use of force.

The inmate, who was not named by the Florida Department of Corrections, died at an “area hospital,” the name of which was not disclosed.

The officers involved in the incident, who were also not named, were put on administrative leave. The incident took place Thursday.

The department’s Office of the Inspector General and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement are investigating.

“If misconduct occurred, those responsible will be held fully accountable for their actions,” department spokeswoman Michelle Glady wrote in a statement. “FDC will not tolerate the malicious application of the use of force.”

Last year, footage of a beating at Lake CI, apparently recorded by inmates using a contraband cell phone, revealed issues of violence at the facility, which houses just over 1,000 men.

The video appeared to show several officers crowding around an inmate, who was sprawled on the ground as officers took turns punching him in the head.

One woman whose husband was recently transferred from Lake CI after more than a year still keeps in touch with three of her husband’s friends who are incarcerated there.

One of the men called her Friday, detailing the death. He is locked up in the same confinement unit as the man who died.

The man said the inmate had been writing grievances against the officers all week, causing them to become angry with him.

“These officers handcuffed him and pretty much just killed him,” said Cynthia, who wanted only to use her first name for fear of retaliation against her husband.

While her husband was at Lake CI, Cynthia said she used to complain frequently about the way her husband’s fellow inmates were treated. One time he saw an inmate in his quad get handcuffed, taken to a separate area, beaten up and then returned to bed.

“It’s horrible,” she said.

Another woman, who declined to provide her name for fear of retaliation against her boyfriend, said he watched from his window as ambulances and “all the important people” rushing toward the dorm.

The man, who has been incarcerated at Lake CI for nine months, said he saw people with cameras who looked like crime scene investigators come toward the dorm. Later on, he said he had heard that a man was beaten up and that his neck was broken.