May 04, 2020

Third inmate at Kansas prison dies from coronavirus

Posted May 04, 2020 8:34 PM
Lansing Correctional Facility -photo KDOC
Lansing Correctional Facility -photo KDOC

TOPEKA, Kansas – A Lansing Correctional Facility resident who died Monday, May 4, had tested positive for COVID-19. This is the third death related to COVID-19, according to a media release from the Kansas Department of Corrections.

The resident was a male over the age of 50 who tested positive for the virus on May 1. He was transferred to Providence Medical Center on May 1. The official manner of death for all COVID-19 deaths is natural causes. 

The individual was serving an 85-month sentence for charges including aggravated indecent liberties with a child, lewd fondling/touching; child less than 14.

He had been imprisoned with the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) since July 2018. For the privacy of his family and due to confidentiality laws, the KDOC will not release his name nor his underlying medical conditions. His family has been notified.

The Lansing Correctional Facility, formerly the Kansas State Penitentiary, opened in 1867 during the presidency of Andrew Johnson and is the oldest and largest state correctional facility in Kansas. Serving only males, the facility capacity is 2,432 residents.