An officer who fired a projectile that left an inmate brain dead acted properly but lacked the training that might have helped him avoid hitting the inmate in the head, the prison system's inspector general said last Tuesday.
Daniel Provencio, 28, died March 4, weeks after he was shot in the head with a foam projectile during a brawl at Wasco State Prison Jan. 16. Provencio's case generated interest in part because prison policy required that the inmate, who was declared brain dead, be guarded around the clock at a cost to taxpayers of $1,056 a day.
The tower officer who fired the projectile was aiming for Provencio's leg but missed, according to the report by Inspector General's Office of Independent Review. But the office said the evidence supports three separate Department of Corrections internal investigations that found the officer acted reasonably and did not violate prison policy.
Provencio was not involved in the incident that eventually culminated in the shooting, a food fight between two other inmates. But he began moving in "a hostile and threatening manner" toward the officer who was trying to break up the fight, said the report. The report said Provencio's blood alcohol content was nearly twice the state's legal limit of .08, the result of alcohol he obtained illegally behind bars.
A second officer stationed in a tower fired the 40mm projectile from a distance of about 50 feet away. The officer, who has not been named, said he was aiming for Provencio's right thigh but instead hit him in the forehead. Provencio got up and continued resisting until he collapsed while receiving medical treatment, the report says.
The inspector general's investigation found the projectile launcher tends to fire higher than the shooter intends. Combined with Provencio's movement toward the tower, that could explain why he was hit in the head.
The probe also found that guards rarely fire projectiles during training because each costs $20 to $25. The first time they fire the weapon may be during an emergency.