Alabama inmate dies after being stabbed in the eye, authorities say

William Stanley Warren

William Stanley Warren (Alabama Department of Correction)

A man serving life for a 1994 murder conviction was stabbed to death in an Alabama prison.

The slaying happened almost one week ago – on Oct. 17 – at Ventress Correctional Facility in Clayton, according to the Alabama Department of Corrections. Authorities identified the slain inmate as 52-year-old William Stanley Warren, of Guntersville.

About 5 p.m. that Thursday, a correctional officer approached a crowd of inmates as they dispersed and found Warren bleeding from the facial area. Warren had been stabbed in the eye.

He was taken to the prison’s health care unit and then transported to a hospital for further medical treatment. Warren later died.

His death is being investigated by the ADOC’s Investigation and Intelligence Division.

Warren was given life sentence for a 1994 murder conviction out of Marshall County. Then 26, Warren was convicted in the shooting death of Laura Lee Jordan, 21, during an Aug. 2, 1993 incident at the home they shared in Guntersville.

Despite a case marred by errors in the chain of evidence by the investigating Guntersville Police Department, prosecutors apparently convinced the jurors that Warren intentionally killed Jordan by shooting her in the head with a .357-caliber handgun.

While Warren initially told police Jordan’s 3-year-old son accidentally shot his mother, he later said he and the woman were arguing and struggling with the gun when it discharged and struck her in the head.

Warren was released on parole on the murder charge in 2016, according to court records. He was sent back to prison for a parole violation. Records do not state why or when that occurred. Efforts to reach ADOC for additional information were not successful.

This article was updated on Oct. 24, 2019 to show Warren had been released on parole.

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