Johnny Brewer
Johnny Brewer, 41, was found hanging from a bed sheet in his solitary confinement cell at Kirkland Correctional Institution in Columbia early on Monday, July 23, 2007, and was pronounced dead at 2:50 a.m. Richland County Coroner Gary Watts said evidence points to suicide. The South Carolina Department of Corrections said it is investigating the death. Prison officials told the Rock Hill Herald that Brewer was not on suicide watch.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (neglect alleged). The Richland County coroner and the South Carolina Department of Corrections say he hanged himself in his solitary cell, and prison officials said he was not on suicide watch, which the accounts describe as a failure to flag his risk.
Reported by: Richland County Coroner Gary Watts (medical examiner or coroner); South Carolina Department of Corrections (the agency that held him).