Ped'phile Found Dead in Cell, Beaten to Death by Cellmate

Garrick Bloom fled Pennsylvania after a judge signed a warrant for his arrest, charging him with more than 860 counts of child rape. Weeks later, on February 7, 2019, police in Tallahassee arrested the 48-year-old at the Kearney Center after tips led them to his location.

Bloom had been charged with 216 counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a child, 216 counts of child rape, 216 counts of aggravated indecent assault of a child, 216 counts of statutory sexual assault, and endangering the welfare of a child.

Bloom abused a 5-year-old boy whom he had groomed for ‘several years’ in 2007.

After his arrest, Bloom was extradited to the Leon County Detention Center in Pennsylvania to await trial.

Bloom Sentenced to 40 to 80 Years, Found Deceased in Cell

Facing 15,000 years in prison, Bloom accepted a plea deal sentencing him to 40 to 80 years in prison. In December 2019, he was transferred to the  State Correctional Instuttue-Houtzdale to serve his sentence.

On August 29, 2020, Bloom’s cellmate, 33-year-old Jacob Michael Mitchell, killed his cellmate. Correctional officers found Bloom unresponsive in his cell during a head count at 11:04 p.m.

He had bruises all over his face and marks on his neck, indicating he had been strangled with a string. He also had dried blood on his face. During a cell search, police observed blood on the door, floor, sheets, a mattress, and a pillowcase.

Despite resuscitation efforts, Bloom was pronounced dead at the prison infirmary at 11:43 p.m.

The Altercation

Mitchell told police that he had fallen asleep on his bunk after drinking prison hooch all day when he was awakened by Bloom touching him inappropriately. He jumped off his bunk and began punching him. When he had Bloom on the ground, Bloom bit his finger, sending him into a fit of rage. 

After assaulting Bloom, he pushed the panic button to notify the guards. “I think he’s dead,” he told them.

On September 10, 2020, prison officials determined that Mitchell had tied a string around Bloom’s neck in an attempt to hang him so his death would appear as a suicide.

An autopsy determined Bloom died from ligature strangulation homicide.

Mitchell Sentenced to 7 ½ to 15 Years

Jacob Michael Mitchell was charged with felony criminal homicide, aggravated assault by a prisoner, and several related misdemeanor offenses. He accepted a plea deal for involuntary manslaughter, with the remaining charges dismissed. He was sentenced to 7.5 to 15 years in prison.

Mitchell was serving a term of 2 to 6 years in prison from a conviction of felony theft and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. While incarcerated, Mitchell was charged with four counts of aggraavted assault after an incident with another inmate. He pleaded guilty and was transferred to SCI in December 2014. 

Prison Homicides in The U.S.

In 2019, approximately 143 prisoners died by homicide in U.S. prisons, an increase of 19 deaths from the prior year.  The number of homicides has steadily and drastically increased since 2008 when only 43 murders occurred in U.S. prisons.

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