4 Missouri prison guards charged with murder, and a fifth with manslaughter, in death of Black man

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Four Missouri prison guards have been charged with murder, and a fifth with accessory to involuntary manslaughter, in the December death of a Black man who was in custody at the Jefferson City Correctional Center. Thirty-eight-year-old Othel Moore Jr. died on Dec. 8. A criminal complaint filed Friday says the guards pepper-sprayed Moore, placed a mask over his face and left him in a position that caused him to suffocate. The Missouri Department of Corrections released a statement Friday saying Moore died in a restraint system designed to prevent injury to himself and others. The department says it has discontinued using that system. All five defendants are jailed. Multiple Associated Press phone calls to numbers associated with the defendants were not answered Friday.