In Florida’s corrections system, death comes in many forms — disease, despair, drugs and violence.
Over the last decade, at least 4,000 inmates have died in a Florida jail or prison, according to the Florida Department of Corrections inmate mortality data and unredacted in-custody death reports obtained by USA TODAY from the U.S. Department of Justice.
An analysis of these mortality records revealed that “natural deaths” — the state’s broad catch-all category for illnesses — dominate. But within those numbers, patterns in suicides, overdoses and homicides exist, along with unanswered questions about cases still under investigation.
Together, the numbers offer a broader look at how and why people are dying behind bars. Here are four key takeaways from the USA TODAY Network’s review of the data.
Inmates more likely to die from certain illnesses
Over the last decade, thousands of inmates have died in the criminal justice system due to illness. Natural deaths, which the DOC defines as anything that doesn’t fall in the category of suicide, homicide or accidental, is the leading cause of death in prisons.
“Many inmates have not had regular access to any form of health care prior to being sentenced,” the DOC said on its inmate mortality webpage. “In addition, many inmates suffer from pre-existing conditions such as alcohol and drug addiction, mental health issues and chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension.”
Stephanie Grace Prost, an associate professor at the University of Louisville whose research focuses on healthcare in criminal justice systems, affirmed this. She said most who people enter the corrections system aren’t healthy and the prison environment only makes it worse.
“Correctional healthcare is complicated,” Prost said. “In part because people are coming in with much more complex health profiles … and part of it is the sheer number of people, the staffing ratio.”
Prison conditions, staffing shortages and prison policies are among the long list of things Prost said creates hurdles to healthcare access for inmates.
And records between 2016 and 2019 obtained by USA TODAY show many inmates die from illnesses or medical complications that are easily preventable if they weren’t behind bars.
Pneumonia, sepsis — an extreme immune response to an infection, which can damage your organs — and other severe infections were among the top 10 most common causes of illness-related deaths in Florida jails and prisons, according to a review of the data. These illnesses are serious but typically treatable with early intervention and monitoring.
An academic study of sepsis deaths at a Florida hospital found that inmates are about three times more likely to die from it than those in society who are free to head to the hospital, as previously reported by USA TODAY.
Diabetes was another major cause of inmates’ deaths. It too is a manageable disease but requires treatment plans, access to insulin and control over one’s diet, which isn’t a guarantee in a prison setting.
The American Diabetes Association says it’s common for correctional officers to misidentify hypoglycemia emergencies for intoxication or noncompliance and that people with diabetes in short-term custody may be denied diabetes care altogether.
An officer may not believe an inmate is experiencing a medical crisis or an inmate may think staff won’t help them if they speak up. A lack of trust between inmates, officers and healthcare providers can perpetuate the struggle for quality treatment while incarcerated, Prost said.
Correctional healthcare is “a difficult space because of the power differential,” she said. “Trust is such an important part of good healthcare, and it’s by the very nature of the setting that (trust) is tempered with.”
Homicides higher in critically understaffed prisons
Jackson Correctional Institution had the most homicides, with at least four murders reported between 2016 and 2019. It also happens to be one of the nine critically understaffed prisons Gov. Ron DeSantis mobilized the Florida National Guard into until statewide staffing numbers were stabilized.
Hamilton Correctional Institution is another prison with higher homicide numbers that also was one of the nine severely understaffed prisons. It had at least two reported homicides during the same time period.
James Baiardi, the president of the state corrections chapter of the Florida Police Benevolent Association, says the lack of officers, or the lack of seasoned officers, could have played into these higher numbers.
“You’re getting younger officers with less experience and you’re getting a more violent inmate population, and those two put together is a bad formula,” Baiardi said.
DeSantis temporarily directed hundreds from the Florida National Guard in 2022 to fill the critical labor shortage in the state prisons. Members of the guard worked in the prisons until June 2025 after the DOC determined its staffing numbers weren’t as low as they once were.
Baiardi said he couldn’t speak to whether the National Guard’s presence made the prisons run better or safer, but both Jackson C.I. and Hamilton C.I. didn’t have any reported homicides after the Guard stepped in, according to the Democrat’s review of the DOC’s inmate mortality data between July 2020 and March 2026.
Data shows Santa Rosa County is hotspot for suicides, overdoses
While illnesses account for the most incarcerated deaths, suicides and drug overdoses are close behind, and both the Santa Rosa County Jail and Santa Rosa Correctional Institution were among the highest number of deaths in the state due to these causes.
According to USA TODAY’s data set, at least four, or 57%, of deaths in the Santa Rosa County Jail were suicides — that’s triple the state norm during that time — and at least seven, or 21% of deaths reported at Santa Rosa C.I. were suicides.
The state prison — another institution that received aid from the Florida National Guard — also reported at least seven deaths due to accidental overdoses, the second most overdose deaths in the data set. The most reported overdose deaths was at Blackwater River Correctional Facility, which is a private prison also located in Santa Rosa County.
A tenth of deaths still remain under investigation
When reviewing death data, USA TODAY found a number of cases that didn’t include a cause of death, and this lack of reporting still persists today.
The DOC’s mortality data shows that between July 2020 to March 2026, 2,600 inmates died in the state prisons. Nearly 10% of those deaths were labeled “pending.”
When a death case is pending, this means the medical examiner’s office is still determining the manner of death, and only the date of the death is publicly provided. No other information, including the inmate’s name and corrections number, is listed.
This information also appears to be withheld when a death was deemed a homicide.
A USA TODAY Network – Florida reporter asked the DOC why this information is withheld and what the general time frame is for closing these pending cases. “FDC does not release an inmate’s identifying information until all involved law enforcement agencies have completed their investigations,” a spokesperson wrote in an email. “Given the involvement of multiple agencies, we are unable to provide a general timeframe for completion.”
Deaths in Florida jails by the numbers
USA TODAY’s data set encompasses deaths between 2016 and 2019. Causes of death were only included if they were at least 10 percentage points different from the statewide rate of each cause of death if the facility had 5 or more deaths. Provided below is a breakdown of how many types of deaths occurred at each local institution. It is important to note that due to incomplete records or records that didn’t include a cause of death, this tally is likely an undercount.
Deaths in Florida prisons by the numbers
USA TODAY’s data set encompasses deaths between 2016 and 2019. Causes of death were only included if they were at least 10 percentage points different from the statewide rate of each cause of death if the facility had 5 or more deaths. Provided below is a breakdown of how many types of deaths occurred at each major state-run institution. It is important to note that due to incomplete records or records that didn’t include a cause of death, this tally is likely an undercount.
USA TODAY Investigative Data Reporter Austin Fast contributed. Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Disease, despair, drugs: How inmates are dying in Florida
Reporting by Elena Barrera, Tallahassee Democrat / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Elena Barrera, Tallahassee Democrat | USA TODAY Network
