BUTNER, N.C. — An inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Butner I, in Butner, North Carolina has died after testing positive for COVID-19, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
On March 26, inmate Charles Richard Rootes went into respiratory failure at the FCI Butner I, was evaluated by institutional medical staff and transported to a hospital for further treatment.
Rootes tested positive for COVID-19 while at the hospital.
On March 27, 2020, his condition declined and he was placed on a ventilator.
On April 11, Rootes was pronounced dead by hospital staff.
Rootes was an 81-year-old man with long-term, pre-existing medical conditions, which the CDC lists as risk factors for developing more severe COVID-19 disease.
He had been sentenced in the Eastern District of Tennessee to a 99-year sentence for Kidnapping, National Motor Vehicle Theft Act, and Rape.
Rootes had been in custody at FCI Butner I since October 22, 2019. FCI Butner I is a medium-security facility that is currently housing 641 male offenders.
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