Aureon Grace: Georgia Prison Worker Killed by Inmate
Aureon Grace, 24, began the year with a new job, working in the kitchen at Smith State Prison in Glennville, Georgia in Tattnall County.
A Statesboro mother of two kids – a 1-year-old son and a 4-year-old daughter – Grace would work super-hard to take care of her family.
“She would work 11 days straight, 14 days straight, just to make money to make sure she could provide for her kids,” her mother DeshondaHagins told TV station WTOC.
“She was a sister, she was a daughter, she was a mother. She was loved,” said Hagin.
Grace started in January as an Aramark food service employee, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections.
About 4:30 a.m. on Sunday, June 16, 2024, Grace was shot to death while working her shift in the prison’s kitchen. According to the Georgia Department of Corrections, an inmate, Jaydrekus Hart, fatally shot her.
Grace was pronounced dead at the scene. Hart then shot himself, according to the department. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died from a gunshot wound.
According to the Georgia Department of Corrections, Hart and Grace had a personal relationship. Prison officials also found a suicide note that apoears to have been written by Hart.
He was serving a 20-year term for voluntary manslaughter and aggravated battery out of Carroll County with a maximum release date of June 2043.
Aramark, Grace’s employer, released the following statement: “We are heartbroken over the loss of our colleague and our hearts and prayers go out to her family. This is a tragedy for all of us, and we are assisting the GA DOC in their investigation.”
Prison officials are still investigating how Hart obtained a weapon behind bars.