By Craig Kelly
The Lima News, Ohio
CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — A correction officer at an Ohio prison is dead following an assault by an inmate, according to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.
In a Facebook post issued Wednesday afternoon, ODRC Director Annette Chambers-Smith announced that Correction Officer Andrew Lansing was dead after being assaulted by an inmate Wednesday morning at Ross Correctional Institution in Chillicothe.
“Officer Lansing is a long-time, well-respected employee at Ross, and his untimely death — on Christmas Day — is heartbreaking for his family, the entire Ross Correctional Institution family and our agency as a whole,” Chambers-Smith said in the statement. “Officer Lansing was loved by his colleagues and known to be a great support for his fellow RCI staff. He was a friendly, outgoing officer who treated everyone with respect and was always a professional.”
Chambers-Smith continued to reflect on the added tragedy that such an incident brings coming on a holiday like Christmas, saying that losing an officer “at the hands of someone in our custody is a tragedy beyond comprehension.
“Instead of going home after his shift to be with his family on this holiday, Officer Lansing made the ultimate sacrifice, and our agency will never be the same,” she added.
As of the time of the Facebook post, which was made at 1:51 p.m. , the facility was operating under restricted movement and the incident was being investigated by the Ohio State Highway Patrol. The inmate involved in the incident, whose name was not included in the post, was transferred to Southern Ohio Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison in Lucasville, according to Chambers-Smith.
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