Prisoner dead after attack by fellow inmate

On Tuesday morning, Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis updated the press on the latest inmate death following an altercation last weekend. On Saturday (June 15), Jory Van Antwerp died of a brain hemorrhage, believed to have been caused by multiple kicks to the head by fellow inmate and suspect William Harrison Gillespie. The local sheriff explained the timeline of events that led to Antwerp’s death on Tuesday.

The series of unfortunate events began on January 4, when the victim, Jory Linn Van Antwerp, was booked into the Hernando County Detention Center. Sheriff Nienhuis noted that Antwerp “was under medical care for a very, very serious medical condition prior to his arrest in January” and continued to receive outpatient treatment for his illness after his arrest. Due to his condition, he was then assigned to the medical unit full-time on April 23.

The suspect, William Harrison Gillespie, was later booked into the jail on June 4 on two counts of assault before he was involved in “a fight with a cellmate in the safe house” on June 9. Authorities then placed Gillespie in “disciplinary custody,” believing he was the aggressor in that case as well.

A day later, on June 10, Gillespie “did not get along with his cellmate in solitary confinement” and got into another altercation. Despite being the aggressor, he was injured enough to require temporary hospitalization. Upon his return to prison, he was taken to the infirmary for further treatment of his injuries and placed in cell 105 while in “administrative solitary confinement” due to his previous actions. This is where Gillespie and Antwerp crossed paths.

At 10 a.m. on Friday, Gillespie was called out of his cell to question him about his previous altercations and to determine whether charges would be filed. As he left his cell, the suspect kicked Antwerp in the head multiple times, although the sick inmate “did not interact with our suspect at all, was very compliant and did not really respond.”

Although Gillespie claimed Antwerp had provoked him, the other inmates agreed that Antwerp had not incited his attacker at all. “It was completely unprovoked,” Nienhuis said. As a result, the suspect was charged with assault on a person detained in a prison or detention facility and later with premeditated murder.

When officers assessed the victim’s condition minutes after Gillespie’s arrest, Antwerp appeared to be fine. When several members of staff gathered to check his vital signs, Antwerp was acting “completely normal” and even refused medical treatment. There were no obvious injuries and he continued to act normally until later that evening.

The sheriff noted that the only signs clearly visible post mortem were the traces of a bruise on his cheek, which almost looked as if the victim had been slapped. This was likely due to most of the force being applied to the upper part of the skull, resulting in bruising that was mostly hidden by the hairline.

He began showing symptoms during the night and authorities took him to hospital the next morning, where a CT scan showed a brain hemorrhage that was unrelated to his previous medical condition. Antwerp succumbed to his injuries at 8:02 p.m. that same evening, less than 36 hours after suffering the kicks to the head.

So what was the reason for the attack? Prison can be especially dangerous for people who have committed crimes against children. Although Antwerp has been charged with six counts of sexual abuse of minors between the ages of 12 and 18, the sheriff does not believe that was the reason for the attack. The sheriff’s office is “relatively certain” that the suspect was unaware of the charges against Antwerp. “It was a crime of opportunity (…) (Gillespie) just snapped,” Nienhuis explained.

Gillespie has been charged with 11 felonies, five of which resulted in convictions, and 13 misdemeanors, four of which resulted in convictions. The sheriff points out that the classifications are very complicated when it comes to segregating certain of the 650 inmates, but he believes his staff does their jobs with aplomb. “It’s amazing to me that there aren’t more interactions that lead to fights,” Nienhuis said.

The prison’s infirmary has a relatively small capacity, housing only eight double bunk beds, and the upper beds are unusable due to the medical nature of the cells. The sheriff pointed out that this is one of the reasons why the county decided to conduct a study and create a master plan to increase the size of the infirmary for inmates with medical ailments. This would provide more beds, single cells and mental health facilities for inmates in need in the future.