FOLSOM – Officials with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation are investigating the July 18 death of an incarcerated man at California State Prison, Sacramento (SAC) as a homicide, following a recent ruling from the Sacramento County Coroner.
According to CDCR, staff discovered 23-year-old Anthony S. Francis Jr. unconscious on the floor of his cell at 6:37 p.m. on July 18. His cellmate, 38-year-old Chase E. Jenkins, was present in the cell at the time. Francis was taken to the prison’s triage and treatment area, where a paramedic pronounced him deceased at 7:24 p.m.
On Sept. 11, the Sacramento County Coroner determined Francis’ official cause of death to be homicide. Jenkins has since been placed in restricted housing pending an investigation by the prison’s Investigative Services Unit and the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. The Office of the Inspector General has also been notified.
Francis was received from Glenn County on June 3, 2024, to serve a 12-year sentence for voluntary manslaughter with an enhancement for the personal use of a dangerous or deadly weapon. While incarcerated, he was also sentenced in May 2024 to an additional year and four months for two counts of battery against a custodial officer, to be served concurrently.
Jenkins, who was received from San Diego County in July 2023, is serving an 11-year sentence for second-degree robbery as a second striker, with a prior felony conviction for a serious offense.
California State Prison, Sacramento, opened in 1986 and houses more than 2,100 medium-, maximum- and high-security incarcerated individuals. The institution offers academic and vocational programs and employs about 2,000 people.
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