Fla. prison inmate death under investigation

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Florida law enforcement authorities are investigating the September death of an inmate housed at a north Florida prison.

The Department of Corrections acknowledged Thursday that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement was looking into a death that occurred at Union Correctional Institution in Raiford.

A spokeswoman for the agency said that the investigation was checking into whether excessive use of force had contributed to the death. The department plans to hold a news conference at the prison on Friday to discuss the investigation.

The department did not release the name of inmate but the Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald reported that the dead inmate was Frank Smith and had served most of a 16-year sentence for carjacking and assault convictions in Miami-Dade County.