Investigation Continues In Graceville Correctional Facility Murder
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Updated: 10:53 PM Mar 20, 2010
Investigation Continues In Graceville Correctional Facility Murder
Authorities are continuing to investigate the death of an inmate at the Graceville Correctional Facility last week. 31-year-old Jason Owens died the morning of March 12th from injuries he sustained during a physical altercation with another inmate. His murder is raising several questions from his family.
Posted: 5:53 PM Mar 19, 2010
Reporter: Vanessa Nguyen
Email Address: vanessa.nguyen@wjhg.com

Jason Owens Murder
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Authorities are continuing to investigate the death of an inmate at the Graceville Correctional Facility last week.
31-year-old Jason Owens died the morning of March 12th from injuries he sustained during a physical altercation with another inmate.
His murder is raising several questions from his family.

31-year-old Jason Owens was serving a 15-year sentence at Graceville Correctional Facility for several 2003 burglary convictions out of Pasco County.
Owens will not be serving the last half of his sentence.
He was beaten by another inmate and died from his injuries on March 12th.
"It was a physical altercation, at this point, it appears to be between two inmates, the investigation is progressing well, we do have a suspect," says DOC Communications Director Gretl Plessinger.
Authorities are not releasing the suspect's name, but Plessinger says the State Attorney's Office now has the case.
"Once we confirm the evidence then the State Attorney's Office will be able to charge that individual."
"The prison will not tell me anything."
Owens' sister, Chasity, says she's frustrated by how the prison's warden, Mark Henry, has handled her brother's murder.
"I am angry about that, Mark Henry couldn't even give me any condolences, he told me he would not tell me he was sorry or anything."
Chasity says he brother had turned his life around while in prison.
"He found God. Everybody that I talked to about this said my brother was quiet, he stayed out of trouble, he didn't get into gangs, he was a very good guy."
Owens' death has also raised a lot of questions about the prison itself.
Several viewers left comments on our web channel claiming Graceville Correctional Facility has a long history of security problems.
The facility is one of only six private prisons in Florida.
"Inmates who are sentenced to the Florida Department of Corrections custody, some of them are housed in private prisons, usually around 8,000 inmates out of 101,000 inmates."
NewsChannel 7 contacted the GEO group, who runs the Graceville prison, but they declined our interview request.
As for the Owens' family, they say they're just looking for the truth.

DOC officials have moved the suspect in Owens' death to Florida State Prison which is located in Raiford, Florida.


Latest Comments

Posted by: gary Location: tampa,fl on Jan 24, 2012 at 06:47 PM

it sounds like the prisons in fl are a joke i did time in ohios prison system and when i first heard of privatly owned prison i knew there would be problem hell the state owned places have it bad im sorry for your loss and i hope you get this place shut down or get this warden and staff put behind them same bars
Posted by: hunter on May 17, 2011 at 06:02 AM

i know all of those guys. hot rod flaco and ortiz wont do something like that unless ur son has wronged them. they definitly did not rape him either
Posted by: hunter Location: tallahassee on May 17, 2011 at 05:58 AM

i was in graceville prison when this occured. i was sitting about 3 feet from him in my horticulture class when i watched him get killed. it was not a fight. the other inmate was a coward and attacked jason while he was doing school work to get transfered to another prison. pathetic