Foul play is not suspected in last week’s death of a Vermont inmate being held at the private prison in Tutwiler, according to Tallahatchie County Coroner Anthony Hawkins.
The deceased, identified as Shawn Sears, was a 56-year-old Vermont Department of Corrections (VDOC) inmate housed at the Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility.
Correctional staff found Sears unresponsive in his cell on the morning of Wednesday, May 20. They contacted prison medical staff, who attempted to provide emergency treatment, according to an online news account by VermontBiz.
Hawkins said he pronounced Sears dead at 9:55 a.m.
The coroner noted that he found “no visible signs of foul play” during his physical examination of the body.
Hawkins said he transported Sears' body to a state crime lab for autopsy.
Sears, of Whiting, Vermont, was said to be one of 147 men in VDOC custody housed at the Tutwiler lockup under a contract with prison operator CoreCivic.
He was the second Vermont prisoner held at the Tutwiler facility to die there this year, according to a story by Vermont Public.
