12th Mississippi inmate dies in the month of August

Sarah Fowler | Mississippi Clarion Ledger

Show Caption Hide Caption MDOC Commissioner Pelicia Hall on reducing inmates in regional jails Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Pelicia Hall speaking before sheriffs and others about MDOC reducing inmate population in county regional jails.

Another inmate has died in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, making 12 deaths this month.

Troy Pittman, 59, died at Promise Hospital at 1:20 Monday morning, according to Rankin County Coroner David Ruth.

The manner and cause of death are pending autopsy but Ruth said Pittman likely died of "natural causes."

Pittman was an inmate at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, making him the fifth inmate death at the facility this month. Sentenced out of Alcorn County in 2000, he was serving a 30-year-sentence for two counts of sexual battery and sexual assualt.

The ages of the 11 other deceased inmates in August range from 24 to 78. Three were housed at the South Mississippi Correctional Institution, four were at Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, three were at Parchman and one was housed at the privately run Wikinson County Correctional Facility.

Five of the deceased were black and seven were white.

Two other inmates at Parchman were found dead in their cells within hours of each in April. Michael Montrell Norwood, 29, and Milton Craig, 28, were found unresponsive in their single cells in separate buildings at Unit 29 on April 2 of "apparent suicides."

The manner and cause of death has not been made public in any of the other deaths.

This story has been updated since it was first published.

Inmate deaths this month

Aug. 2: Albert McGee, 57, South Mississippi Correctional Institution in Leakesville

Aug. 4: Charles R. McCullough, 66, State Penitentiary at Parchman

Aug. 4: Willie Hollinghead, 36, South Mississippi Correctional Institution

Aug. 5: Robert Joseph, 38, Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Rankin County

Aug. 5: Jack Glisson, 70, South Mississippi Correctional Institution

Aug. 11: Ricky Martin, 58, Central Mississippi Correctional Facility

Aug. 15: Lucious Bolton, 29, State Penitentiary

Aug. 19: James Myrick, 63, State Penitentiary

Aug. 20: Nija Bonhomme, 24, Wilkinson County Correctional Facility in Woodville

Aug 20: John Luttrell, 67, Central Mississippi Correctional Facility

Aug 23: Nicole Rathman, 33, Central Mississippi Correctional Facility

Aug. 27: Troy Pittman, 59, Central Mississippi Correctional Facility