Nebraska Corrections Dept: inmates’ deaths during March riot at Tecumseh prison “homicide”

Nebraska prison officials have announced the cause of death of two inmates who were killed at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution in March.

Officials list the manner of death as “homicide.”

The Nebraska Department of Correctional Services received confirmation Wednesday on the official causes of death for Michael Galindo and Damon Fitzgerald. As we reported, Galindo and Fitzgerald were found deceased following a disturbance at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution on March 2, 2017.

Galindo’s death certificate lists “inhalation of combustion products” with contributing causes of “multiple sharp and blunt force injuries.” He was serving 12 to 21 years on robbery and other charges.

Fitzgerald’s death certificate lists “multiple sharp and blunt force injuries to head and torso” with contributing factors of “thermal injury and external compression of neck structures.” Fitzgerald was sentenced to hundreds of years in prison for crimes including sexual assault.

NDCS Director Scott R. Frakes extended his sympathy to the families affected by this tragedy. “This loss of life reminds us of the dangerousness of prison and the enormous responsibility we have to keep people safe,” he said.

The criminal investigation into the deaths of Galindo and Fitzgerald is ongoing.

The riot in March involved about 40 inmates who refused to return to their cells, and is similar to a much larger one back in May of 2015, in which inmates murdered two sex offenders and caused millions of dollars in damage at the southeastern Nebraska facility. Some lawmakers in Nebraska accuse corrections officials of trying to downplay the incidents leading up to the inmates’ deaths. The department has been dealt several years of controversy, including a computer glitch that allowed violent offenders to be paroled early, union demands for better pay and shorter hours, and a string of inmate deaths and assaults dating back at least four years.

Two inmates were killed in a May 2015 riot that caused millions of dollars in damage and demands for upgrades and better staffing.