Derrek Martin
Derrek Martin, 38, was held at Elmore Correctional Facility in Alabama when he died on December 12, 2023. The Alabama Department of Corrections said he died after a verbal altercation with another man escalated into an assault, and that he worsened at the health unit before being pronounced dead. The Equal Justice Initiative, citing witnesses, says three men attacked him in his dormitory around 5 a.m. and that no staff answered his cries for help, with the assigned officer reportedly asleep. His mother, Betty Martin, said she had received photos of injuries from repeated beatings and had asked the facility again and again to move him to protective custody, where she was told the beds were full. The department said a cell phone video purportedly showing a beating was from a different assault at another prison.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody (disputed; neglect alleged). The Alabama Department of Corrections says another prisoner assaulted Martin after a verbal fight, while the Equal Justice Initiative, citing witnesses, says three men attacked him and the assigned officer was asleep and did not answer cries for help; his mother says staff refused her repeated requests to move him to protective custody because the beds were full.
Reported by: Alabama Department of Corrections (the agency that held him); Equal Justice Initiative (advocates); witnesses; Betty Martin, his mother (family or their lawyers).
News reports (5)
- Man Beaten to Death at Alabama’s Elmore Correctional Facility
- Inmate dead after assault at Elmore Correctional Facility
- Inmate dies at Elmore Correctional after assault
- Families describe assaults and deaths behind bars during hearing on Alabama prison conditions
- Man Killed in Faith Unit at Elmore Is Fifth Alabama Prison Homicide Victim in Three Months