Inmate Killed At Donaldson Correctional Facility In Bessemer

BESSEMER, AL — Another inmate at Donaldson Correctional Facility in Bessemer has died, making this the fourth inmate at the prison to die in less than a month. Authorities say 49-year-old William Eric Jennings was found unresponsive in his two-man cell on Tuesday night.

Reports say Jennings died from blunt force trauma after a fight with another inmate.

Jennings was serving a life sentence after being convicted of the 1993 murder of Brian Keith Weston in Jefferson County.

Jennings' death is the second in less than a week at the facility and the fourth since Feb. 18.

Inmate Victor Joseph Russo, 60, died Friday, Feb. 25 at UAB Hospital. Russo, who was serving a life sentence for a 1987 murder in Jefferson County, was pronounced dead from blunt force.

Wednesday, Feb. 23, 33-year-old Barry Wardell Gardner was found stabbed to death in an open-style dormitory at the prison. Gardner was serving a 13-year sentence for burglary and theft convictions.

On Friday, Feb. 18, Johnathan Ray Revells, 42, was found unresponsive in his single-man cell by correctional staff performing a routine cell check.

Revells was serving a life sentence for a Lee County murder in 2004. An autopsy performed Saturday revealed no foul play or trauma, but the cause of Revells' death has not been determined by the Jefferson County Coroner's Office.