An inmate serving life for killing a man in 1999 dies in prison

JACKSON, Miss. (WCBI) – An inmate sentenced to life after being convicted of killing a man 21 years ago in Hinds County dies in prison Tuesday morning.

Mississippi Department of Corrections said 69-year-old Albert Smith died at Merit Health Central in Jackson early Tuesday morning.

Smith was being housed at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Rankin County.

MDOC said Smith has been hospitalized since August 2 and most likely died from natural causes.

Smith was sentenced to life in 2003 for the homicide that occurred in 1999.

The Mississippi Court of Appeals upheld the conviction and sentence in 2004.

An autopsy will determine the official cause of death.