Inmate dies in hospital at Mississippi’s Parchman prison

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — An inmate who was serving a life sentence for kidnap and rape convictions has died in the hospital of the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman.

The Mississippi Department of Corrections said Monday that 50-year-old Kevin Keith Russell died Sunday after being hospitalized for several days.

The department said Russell had a terminal illness, but it did not specify what that was. An autopsy will be done.

Russell was convicted in Harrison County on charges that stem from a 1998 attack. He was sentenced as a habitual offender on Sept. 1, 2000.

At least 72 inmates have died in Mississippi prisons since late December.