Another incarcerated individual has died in state custody

Yet another incarcerated individual has died in state custody this month after being found in distress by correctional staff, according to a spokesperson for the Alabama Department of Corrections.

Christopher Shannon Fulmer, a 44-year-old incarcerated man at Elmore Correctional Facility, was found on Tuesday “in physical distress” while in his dorm, the department spokesperson said.

Fulmer was later taken to the facility’s health care unit, where his condition worsened, according to the department spokesperson. Lifesaving measures were administered but failed to improve his worsening condition, and Fulmer later succumbed and was pronounced deceased later that day.

No cause of death has been released, with the results pending an investigation by the Law Enforcement Services Division of the ADOC.

Fulmer was up for parole in mid-April of last year, his fourth parole hearing in his over 25 years in state custody, with the board ultimately refusing to release him, according to reporting by Beth Shelburne, an investigative reporter for ACLU of Alabama Campaign for Smart Justice.

His next parole hearing would have been in 2027.

During the parole hearing, Fulmer’s mother Sharon shared a three-minute testimonial of how her son was beaten multiple times while incarcerated, resulting in a traumatic brain injury after one such beating in 2017, according to Shelburne’s piece. In addition, during one incident, Fulmer had been robbed at knifepoint by other incarcerated men.

Court records indicate that Fulmer was from White’s Chapel in St. Clair County.

Fulmer’s death is the tenth fatality confirmed to APR in the state corrections system this month and the first confirmed at the Elmore County facility in January.